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HomeMy WebLinkAbout4.1 PROCLAMATION: Recognizing Juneteenth as a Day of Celebration and ReflectionSubject PROCLAMATION: Recognizing Juneteenth as a Day of Celebration and Reflection Meeting June 20, 2023 - REGULAR MEETING OF THE MOUNT PROSPECT VILLAGE BOARD - Fiscal Impact Dollar Amount Budget Source Category MAYORS REPORT Type Information Item Information Alternatives ATTACHMENTS: Proclamation Juneteenth 2023.pdf 1 PROCLAMATION RECOGNIZING JUNETEENTH AS A DAY OF CELEBRATION AND REFLECTION WHEREAS, our country is made up of people from every nation on earth, who are declared equal not only in freedom but also in justice, both which are essential for a healthy human civilization; and WHEREAS, on June 19, 1865 Union Major General Gordon Granger landed at Galveston, Texas with news that the American Civil War had ended two and a half years prior with the signing of President Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863 and that the enslaved are now free; and WHEREAS, the Emancipation Proclamation made the permanent abolition of slavery and provided the legal framework for emancipation of nearly all four million enslaved people as the Union armies advanced; and WHEREAS, hearing of the Proclamation, many enslaved people escaped to Union lines as the army units moved south; and WHEREAS, settling into these new areas as free men and women brought on new realities and the challenges of establishing a heretofore non- existent status for black people in America for President Lincoln's successor, Andrew Johnson overturned the order that provided 40,000 freed men with 400,000 acres of land entitled to them and provided it to the very planters that had declared war on the United States years prior; and WHEREAS, in 1997 the United States Congress passed Senate Joint Resolution 11 and House Joint Resolution 56, officially recognizing Juneteenth Independence Day, along with 45 other states and the District of Columbia declaring it an official holiday; and WHEREAS, June 19th which became known as Juneteenth is celebration of African American freedom and achievement; and WHEREAS, the Village of Mount Prospect supports the celebration of Juneteenth as day of celebration of African American freedom and achievement. NOW, THEREFORE, I, Paul Wm. Hoefert, Mayor of the Village of Mount Prospect, do hereby proclaim June 19, 2023 as Juneteenth in the Village of Mount Prospect and urge all residents to participate fittingly in its observance through listening, learning, celebrating and taking action to create a more equal and just society not only on June 19 but throughout the year. Paul Wm. Hoefert