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| 3 | 4 | | |
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| 4 | 5 | | R E S O L U T I O N |
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| 5 | 6 | | WHEREAS, Residents of Grand Prairie gather each year to |
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| 6 | 7 | | recognize an important milestone in this nation's history at the |
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| 7 | 8 | | city's annual Juneteenth celebration and parade; and |
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| 8 | 9 | | WHEREAS, The oldest known observance commemorating the end of |
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| 9 | 10 | | slavery in the United States, Juneteenth specifically celebrates |
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| 10 | 11 | | the emancipation of African American slaves in Texas; and |
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| 11 | 12 | | WHEREAS, On June 19, 1865, Union Major General Gordon Granger |
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| 12 | 13 | | arrived in Galveston with federal troops to provide military |
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| 13 | 14 | | support for Reconstruction efforts and to enforce President Abraham |
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| 14 | 15 | | Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation; that same day, General |
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| 15 | 16 | | Granger read publicly his General Order No. 3, which proclaimed |
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| 16 | 17 | | that all slaves were undeniably free from that date onward and that |
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| 17 | 18 | | there would be "an absolute equality of rights and rights of |
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| 18 | 19 | | property between former masters and slaves"; and |
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| 19 | 20 | | WHEREAS, Held on June 19 of each year, the commemoration of |
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| 20 | 21 | | this momentous event became known as "Juneteenth," and celebrations |
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| 21 | 22 | | grew over the decades to include recitations of the Emancipation |
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| 22 | 23 | | Proclamation, readings by notable people, and such festive |
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| 23 | 24 | | activities as singing, parades, rodeos, street fairs, and cookouts; |
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| 24 | 25 | | and |
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| 25 | 26 | | WHEREAS, Juneteenth has been observed as an official holiday |
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| 26 | 27 | | in Texas since 1980, when legislation introduced by African |
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| 27 | 28 | | American State Representative Al Edwards during the 1979 |
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| 28 | 29 | | legislative session took effect; with the adoption of that bill, |
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| 29 | 30 | | this special day became the first emancipation holiday in the |
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| 30 | 31 | | country to be granted official state recognition; and |
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| 31 | 32 | | WHEREAS, A much-anticipated event, the Juneteenth |
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| 32 | 33 | | celebration in Grand Prairie offers a fitting opportunity to honor |
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| 33 | 34 | | the myriad achievements and immeasurable fortitude of the African |
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| 34 | 35 | | American community in the Lone Star State and beyond; now, |
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| 35 | 36 | | therefore, be it |
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| 36 | 37 | | RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 87th Texas |
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| 37 | 38 | | Legislature, 3rd Called Session, hereby commemorate the annual |
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| 38 | 39 | | Grand Prairie Juneteenth celebration and parade and extend to all |
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| 39 | 40 | | those involved in organizing the event sincere appreciation for |
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| 40 | 41 | | their efforts. |
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