Celebrating Juneteenth and The Emancipation Proclamation

President Barack Obama, the nation’s first African American president, can view The Emancipation Proclamation every day. The document ending the brutal practice of slavery holds a prominent place in the Oval Office situated near a bust of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Millions of Americans of African descent will celebrate the end of slavery this weekend with parades, cookouts marking the Juneteenth holiday. For a Juneteenth history review, TheVillage visited its archives.