Juneteenth

In 2016, teacher and activist Opal Lee, then 89 years old, walked from Fort Worth, Texas to Washington, D.C. in an effort to make Juneteenth a national holiday. After five years of petitioning, Opal, now called the “Grandmother of Juneteenth,” stood beside President Joe Biden as he signed the bill to formally name Juneteenth a federal holiday in 2021.

Her incredible story is just one of many students will explore in this week’s CERCA Slides set framed around the question, “How did Juneteenth become a national holiday?”

Paired with the direct instruction lesson, “Analyzing Connections within Informational Texts,” this set is sure to spark courageous thinking and conversations, and action.