Juneteenth: Renewing Hope for Our Shared Future

(Former presidents and first ladies gather to celebrate the opening of the Obama Presidential Center June 18, 2026)

Juneteenth, June 19, is the day we pause to remember the date in 1865 when slaves in Texas learned they were free…. it took two years for the promise of the Emancipation Proclamation to take hold in Texas, but freedom finally arrived — complicated, incomplete, but full of hope for a better future.

An extraordinary event occurred this year on June 18, the day before the Juneteenth holiday.  The Obama Presidential Center in Chicago formally opened with a grand celebration including former Presidents Bush, Clinton and Biden along with Barack Obama, and the former first ladies, numerous other dignitaries and celebrities.  But the most notable part of the event were the two addresses given — the first by former First Lady Michelle Obama, and the second by President Obama.  The speeches are included below — no better way to observe this Juneteenth than to listen and reflect on these messages, and then determine to act with hope and purpose to ensure the future of our Democracy.