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Fox, via its #TVForAll campaign, on Monday paid tribute to the Juneteenth holiday with a spot featuring Accused’s Malcolm Jamal-Warner.
According to Jamal-Warner, “it’s okay to acknowledge the hate, the trauma, the disparities that came from hundreds of years of slavery in the U.S. It’s okay because that’s part of the process of together creating a better present and a better future for all Americans.”
“We’ve come a long way as a country but there’s still a long way to go,” he continues. “Recognition and open and honest conversation is part of that journey. Today, let’s celebrate freedom. Let’s move forward – together.”
Juneteenth celebrates the end of slavery in the U.S. after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863. However, the people of Texas were not made aware of that proclamation until two and a half years later. On June 19, 1865, more than two months after the end of the Civil War, Major General Gordon Granger issued the order in Galveston, Texas. The newly freed slaves in Texas thereafter referred to the day as Juneteenth and held parties and get-togethers to celebrate the occasion. Slavery was not officially ended in the U.S. until the end of 1865 with the passage of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution.
Juneteenth became a federal holiday two years ago when Congress passed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act and President Joe Biden signed it into law.
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