BERGEN COUNTY CELEBRATES JUNETEENTH
HACKENSACK, NJ – On Thursday, June 15, the County of Bergen along with the Bergen County African American Advisory Committee hosted a celebration in honor of the 158th anniversary of Juneteenth at the Bergen County Courthouse Green on Main Street in Hackensack.
Juneteenth, often referred to as “Freedom Day”, is a holiday of joy, renewal, and reflection. The date June 19 commemorates the day in 1865 when Major General Gordon Granger, a U.S. Army officer and Union General, issued an order in Galveston, Texas that all slaves were to be freed under the Emancipation Proclamation. The Emancipation Proclamation was issued by Abraham Lincoln two years prior, and those enslaved in Galveston, Texas were among the last to be made aware of the proclamation.
The ceremony consisted of the presentation of colors, speeches by community leaders, prayers from local ministers, and musical renditions. Opening remarks were delivered by President of the Bergen County NAACP Jeff Carter and County Commissioner Mary Amoroso read a proclamation resolving June 19th, 2023, as Juneteenth in Bergen County.
The ceremony culminated in a walk to the One Bergen County Plaza Administration Building for a Juneteenth Flag Raising in the Piazza. The flag was raised by Bergen County Sheriff Anthony Cureton and Chairman of the Bergen County African American Advisory Committee James Edmonds.
Photo Caption: Sheriff Cureton and County African American Advisory Chair James Edmonds raising the Juneteenth Flag
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