TRENTON, N.J. – Freshman Assemblyman Antwan McClellan (R-1) – the NJGOP’s sole black legislator – struck an optimistic note on Friday, the 155th anniversary of the Juneteenth holiday
“Juneteenth is not just an African-American holiday, but an American holiday,” said McClellan in a statement. “Did you know that even after the end of the Civil War and the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, some African-Americans were still in shackles? After the Civil War ended, many of the ‘slave states’ failed to uphold President Lincoln’s executive order ending slavery and commanding all former slaves be set free. Texas, being our most remote ‘slave state,’ had a small Union presence, so carrying out the order was sluggish and unreliable.”
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“So, on June 19th, 1865, Union General Gordon Granger marched into Galveston, Texas, and read aloud the federal orders that stated all formerly enslaved people were free men and women,” McClellan continued. “The former slaves rejoiced, and celebrations broke out across Galveston. The next year ‘Jubilee Day,’ or Juneteenth, was created to commemorate the day every enslaved person in America finally got the chance to taste freedom. It is also a solemn reminder of a painful time in American history that must never be repeated.”
McClellan became the first black American to represent the 1st Legislative District last fall. He faced considerable racism from the Left on his way to victory; notably, a powerful Democrat super pac released a mailer which featured an artificially darkened photo of McClellan. That editing tactic has sometime been used in political campaigns in an attempt to make a black candidate appear more menacing.
The Assemblyman nevertheless sees reason for hope.
“Juneteenth is a day to reflect on how far we have come, and to refocus on the work that still needs to be done. Racial tensions in America are extremely tense, but this will pass. Juneteenth is proof of that. Things can change for the better and they will if we all work together.”
