On Juneteenth, an African American meteorologist reflects on the significance of the holiday and a curious connection to the deadliest storm in U.S history
I am writing this essay on Sunday afternoon as the United States prepares to honor Juneteenth. While many of us have been familiar with Juneteenth over the years, it has become more mainstream and visible since President Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law on June 17th, 2021. With the stroke of his pen, the federal holiday was created to commemorate the end of one the most horrific stains in our nation’s history, slavery. My own personal reflections of Juneteenth come from the lens of being an African American atmospheric scientist. Anchoring in that perspective, I decided to explore the curious connection between Juneteenth and the deadliest natural disaster in U.S. history, the Galveston Hurricane of 1900.
According to the GovInfo.gov website, “On June 19, 1865, federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas to take control of the state and ensure that all enslaved people be freed.” This was actually over two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was active (1863). Since the end of the Civil Warm, many African Americans have celebrated the day and reflected on its place in American culture or history. The National Park Service website notes, “Juneteenth is the oldest known US celebration of the abolition of the chattel slave system, and the emancipation of enslaved African Americans in Texas.
