Ending a big Juneteenth myth

OK, the premise of it being "celebrated annually on June 19 to commemorate the end of slavery in the United States" is plain off wrong.

There were two documents "ending" slavery: The Emancipation Declaration of 1863 and the Thirteenth Amendment.  

Slavery in the United States was officially abolished with the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment on December 6, 1865. However, the Emancipation Proclamation issued by President Lincoln on January 1, 1863, declared freedom for slaves in Confederate states, but did not end slavery nationwide.

On September 22, 1862, President Lincoln issued his Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, which stated that enslaved people in those states or parts of states still in rebellion as of January 1, 1863, would be declared free. One hundred days later, with the rebellion unabated, President issued the Emancipation Proclamation declaring "that all persons held as slaves" within the rebellious areas "are, and henceforward shall be free." 

Because it was a military measure, however, the Emancipation Proclamation was limited in many ways. It applied only to states that had seceded from the Union, leaving slavery untouched in the loyal border states. It also expressly exempted parts of the Confederacy that had already come under Union control. Most important, the freedom it promised depended upon Union military victory.

Although the Emancipation Proclamation did not end slavery in the nation, it did fundamentally transform the character of the war. After January 1, 1863, every advance of federal troops expanded the domain of freedom. Moreover, the Proclamation announced the acceptance of Black men into the Union Army and Navy, enabling the liberated to become liberators. By the end of the war, almost 200,000 Black soldiers and sailors had fought for the Union and freedom.

In the slave-owning areas controlled by Union forces on January 1, 1863, state action was used to abolish slavery. The exceptions were Kentucky, Delaware and New Jersey [1], where chattel slavery and indentured servitude were finally ended by the Thirteenth Amendment in December 1865.

“The Emancipation Proclamation did not lead to widespread freedom of African Americans,” says Berry. “It didn’t change that many people’s lives. Very few enslaved people were given their freedom after the Emancipation Proclamation.” --Time Magazine,When Did Slavery Really End in the U.S.? The Complicated History of Juneteenth

The Thirteenth Amendment:

Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.

So, the Emancipation Declaration of 1863 freed slaves in Confederate states but did not apply to border states or areas under Union control. That meant that slavery was still practised in Kentucky, Delaware, and New Jersey up until 6 December 1865.

Juneteenth was not in any way the end of slavery in the United States.

That's because the Thirteenth Amendment, which was passed on  6 December 1865 officially abolished slavery in the U.S.

The Emancipation Proclamation only applied to the states which were active members of the Confederate States of America. I couldn't get an accurate number on the amount of enslaved people in Delaware, Kentucky, and New Jersey at the time of the 13th Amendment, but I would guess it was more than heard General Order #3 in Galveston, Texas on "Juneteenth".

The final nail in the coffin for this nonsense is:

But even when slavery did end in Texas, formerly enslaved people still had a long road to freedom ahead of them, as they faced inadequate infrastructure to support them as they started new lives. As Laura Smalley, who was born into slavery in Texas, recalled that bittersweet moment in a 1941 interview, “We didn’t know where to go. They turned us out just like, you know, you turn out cattle.”  

Even more cold water: Furthermore, thousands of black slaves were not freed until after the Reconstruction Treaties of late 1866, when the Cherokee, Creek, Chickasaw, Choctaw, and Seminole tribes were forced to sign new treaties that required them to free their slaves.

So much for Juneteenth ending slavery in the United States. 

Footnote: there were 16 people enslaved in New Jersey when the 13th Amendment was passed! 

I don't agree with Thomas Massie about a lot of things, but

 I totally agree with him on this point

 There need to be alternative parties that truly represent the people.

My idea of how prayer in school should be

 OK, I'm not a great artist and I decided to use AI (craiyon) to create an idea I've have in my head.

The US is supposed to not favour one religion in the public sphere--so, this is my take on prayer in school.

Sorry if I left anyone out! It's not intentional. I want to be as inclusive as possible.

Especially since I imagine it to be pretty chaotic if you consider religious diversity. You really shouldn't be excluding ANY spiritual belief.

This seems particularly appropriate given that another airliner was diverted due to prayer recently.

Oh, and the prompts were:

A cartoon classroom full of children, five of them are in christian prayer, a couple are in Muslim prayer, a hasidic jewish boy is praying wearing tefillin, there is a boy who is an Appalachian snake handler, a hindu boy is meditating while levitating a foot off the floor, there are 3 dervish children dancing, native american and african children are dancing wildly.

A cartoon classroom full of children, five of them are in christian prayer, a couple of boys are in Muslim prayer, a hasidic jewish boy is praying wearing tefillin, there is a boy who is an Appalachian snake handler, a hindu boy is meditating while levitating a foot off the floor, there are 3 dervish children dancing, native american and african children are dancing wildly.

A cartoon classroom full of children, five of them are in christian prayer, a couple of boys are in Muslim prayer, a hasidic jewish boy is praying wearing tefillin, there is a boy who is an Appalachian snake handler, a hindu boy is meditating while levitating a foot off the floor, there are 3 dervish children dancing, a couple of rastafarians, native american and african children are dancing wildly.

 Prayer in school shouldn't be peaceful and serene: it needs to be inclusive.

Now, you do understand why the US needs to adopt laïcité?

Why New York Cops Thought Britain’s Unarmed Police Were “Ridiculous”.

 Ok, one thing which sort of makes me different from a lot of people on the "left" is that I have a more pragmatic view of defence and justice issues. So, I thought I would share this clip from Britain's ITN (Independent Television News) news from 1966.

 A lot has changed in 50 years and British police can be seen carrying guns, or have access to firearms.

Let's not forget that not only can we see the police improperly using their firearm, but we can also see civilians using firearms on the police. So, it's not a one way street. 

If people won't amend the constitution, it should be followed to the letter!

 In this case the war powers act,  As I have already pointed out, under the United States Constitution, war powers are divided. Under Article I, Section 8, Congress has the power to:

•     declare war
•     grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal (i.e., license private citizens to capture enemy vessels)
•     raise and support Armies (for terms up to two years at a time)
•     provide and maintain a Navy
•     make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces
•     provide for calling forth the Militia
•     make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water
•     provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia; and
•     govern such Part of [the militia] as may be employed in the Service of the United States.

Section 8 further provides that the states have the power to:

•     Appoint the Officers of the Militia; and
•     train and equip the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress.

I have an interest in comparative constitutional law, and France's interpretation of the separation of church and state: Laïcité, which got me looking at the  constitution of the Fourth French Republic (1946), Article 7, which deals with declaring war:

War may not be declared without a vote by the National Assembly and the preliminary opinion of the Council of the Republic.

I've already pointed out that the executive, or the commander in chief of the military, should not be charged with this ability, which was something which concerned the founders. They expressed a dislike for a standing military.

Unfortunately, their fear has come to pass and the US has a large, standing military. And it is being used to pursue "forever wars".

Recent events have highlighted that the founders were right and some sort of legislation with teeth should be put in place to prevent military adventures. 

Why I think Juneteenth is nonsense

No one really cares about it. In fact, it kind of reminds me of the Greaseman's reaction to another black holiday.

On the other hand, there are things like Odunde and Notting Hill Carneval that have people who really get into them.

 Notting Hill Carneval has been in the public eye for a lot longer than Juneteenth: Sixty years!

Not that many people had heard about Juneteenth before 2020, let alone 1966!