Today the Mahoning Valley joins the rest of the country in celebrating a national holiday of freedom and independence. No, we’re not leapfrogging two weeks ahead to the massive America250 Fourth of July hoopla.

Rather, June 19 marks Juneteenth or as former President Joe Biden proclaimed it for the first time in 2021, the Juneteenth National Independence Day.

The two federal holidays remain intimately entwined. This year marks 250 years since the 1776 Declaration of Independence, which proudly pronounced “all men are created equal.” But for millions of enslaved African Americans, those words would ring hollow until June 19, 1865, when enslaved African Americans officially gained their freedom and independence.

The holiday has been a staple on the calendars of black Americans for decades, but it only entered the mainstream as an official federal holiday in 2021. As such, America’s newest national holiday today also rises as America’s most misunderstood holiday.

Some of the misunderstanding likely derives from its somewhat peculiar and unconventional name. The word Juneteenth is a portmanteau, the blending of two or more words such as brunch for breakfast and lunch or smog for smoke and fog. In this case, Juneteenth combines June and nineteenth to mark that commonly recognized first day of freedom for American slaves.

Still other misunderstandings may be rooted in false impressions about the holiday. For example, many Americans don’t fully comprehend its significance, including the fact that it wasn’t the day slavery ended nationally and it did not immediately usher in full equality for all African Americans. Indeed that struggle continues to this day, 161 years after the first celebration in Texas.

But one of the most pervasive misunderstandings of the holiday is that which promotes today as a red-letter day to be celebrated only by black Americans. The observances today and in coming days in the Valley, Ohio and the nation acknowledge a pivotal moment in the history of America for all Americans. It is the date on which Union Army Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger in Galveston, Texas, issued General Order No. 3 telling the people of the westernmost former Confederate state that “all slaves are free.”

With that short pronouncement, a long and shameful history of Americans holding other Americans in bondage at long last came to a glorious end. In so doing, the freedoms and liberties enshrined in our Bill of Rights and U.S. Constitution broadened for the nation as a whole.

That’s why all of us, regardless of race, creed or color, should pause today to reflect on the significance of Juneteenth and to join in special events marking the holiday. The true spirit of Juneteenth remains one of inclusion of all people into the patchwork fabric of our growing and increasingly diverse nation.

In that vein, Juneteenth National Independence Day is similar to other observances such as St. Patrick’s Day, Cinco de Mayo, Martin Luther King Jr. Day or June’s Pride Month in which people of all cultures and beliefs come together as one to celebrate one significant group’s unique contributions to our multifaceted national identity.

With that in mind, we encourage maximum and diverse participation in any number of Juneteenth events today and in coming days in the region.

Youngstown, for example, will host a Juneteenth celebration with events today through Sunday at Wean Park off South Walnut Street downtown. Respected community leader Dr. Lewis W. Macklin II will serve as grand marshal for the 2026 Juneteenth Legacy Parade, which will step off at 11 a.m. Friday at Commerce Street. A drone show and fireworks will fly high there tonight.

Vendors, food trucks, musical performances, a car show and a soul food cook-off competition will keep that celebration thriving Saturday and Sunday.

In Warren, a “Juneteenth: A Freedom Celebration” will take place 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. today at Quinby Park, 525 Austin Ave. SW, hosted by Community Concerned Citizens II. The event will include a Unity Walk assembling at 11 a.m., music, dance, games and food vendors.

Regardless of how you celebrate, however, be sure to take time to understand and reflect on the underlying reason for the revelry. Like the Fourth of July 15 days from now, Juneteenth marks a landmark moment in this nation’s slow crawl toward maximum inclusion and freedom for all of its citizens and as a launching pad for expanding those freedoms and liberties further for many Juneteenths to come.