Southern Coloradans celebrate Juneteenth holiday

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- June 19 is a day when community members recognize the moment in history when slaves in Texas learned of emancipation.

It was on that day that Union General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, and ordered the slaves free. That announcement came more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln delivered the Emancipation Proclamation.

Juneteenth is a day to celebrate how far people have come, but also how far they have to go. This year, the fight for racial injustice has brought this holiday to the forefront as racism becomes a hot conversation.

Community members gathered at Acacia Park at noon to celebrate the holiday.