Juneteenth is a time to reflect, to remember and to recommit. It marks the day when the last enslaved Black Americans in Galveston, Texas finally learned of their freedom, more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was issued. That delay is a powerful reminder that justice in this country has never arrived all at once, and that freedom delayed is freedom denied.

This year, we mark Juneteenth with a deeper sense of urgency. In our own time, we still witness efforts to rewrite history, suppress truth and divide communities. That is why days like Juneteenth matter. They ask us not only to celebrate the progress made, but to take honest stock of how far we still must go.

The New Golden Age, a Black-Jewish alliance supported by Culture Changing Christians and the Jewish Community Relations Council of the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia, was formed with that same understanding. Our two communities share histories shaped by resilience, faith and struggle. We also share a belief that real change happens when people come together across lines of difference with a commitment to justice and compassion.

Juneteenth challenges us to be more than witnesses to history. It calls on us to be participants in the unfinished work of freedom. Today, we honor the legacy of those who never gave up, and we continue their work with hope, determination and unity.

About the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia

Since 1901, the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia has served as the hub of the region’s Jewish communities, providing an infrastructure of support for Jewish people and organizations in need. Through grants, emergency funding, restricted gifts, endowments, and our partnership with the Foundation for Jewish Day Schools, we annually invest in caring for those in need, combating antisemitism and global crisis, and securing a vibrant Jewish future. For more information, please visit: jewishphilly.org