On Jan. 1, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. It was not until more than 2 years later, on June 19, 1865, that U.S. General Gordon Granger stood in Galveston, Texas, with news that the Civil War was over and all slaves were freed. June 19 has since been recognized as the anniversary of the day the last enslaved Americans learned of their freedom.
On June 17, 2021, President Joe Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law. It is the oldest known celebration commemorating the end of slavery in the U.S.
Publix recognizes the importance of this day and celebrates the freedom it brought.
