“‘Fatso’ Bentley, singing about the Juneteenth Jamboree, the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery. The State of Texas made Juneteenth an official holiday in 19 and 80, and its the only state to celebrate this event.
‘The Juneteenth Jamboree, where everything is strictly free. At the Juneteenth Jamboree there’s no shirking, no one’s working… if you really want to spree, chicks galore I guarantee. Grab your duds and come with me, to the Juneteenth Jamboree.’” ~ Bob Dylan, Theme Time Radio Hour, Episode 10 — “Summer” July 5, 2006
Since that episode of Bob Dylan’s “Theme Time Radio Hour” first aired in 2006, forty-six of the 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia have joined Texas and now recognize June 19 as either a state holiday or official day of observance. In June 2021, Congress passed a resolution establishing Juneteenth as a national holiday; President Biden signed it into law on June 17, 2021.
A Brief History of Juneteenth
