In its concision, eloquence, and clear presentation of history, On Juneteenth vitally revises conventional renderings of Texas and national history. Reworking the traditional “Alamo” framework, she powerfully demonstrates, among other things, that the slave- and race-based economy not only defined the fractious era of Texas independence but precipitated the Mexican-American War and, indeed, the Civil War itself. Combining personal anecdotes with poignant facts gleaned from the annals of American history, Gordon-Reed shows how, from the earliest presence of Black people in Texas to the day in Galveston on June 19, 1865, when Major General Gordon Granger announced the end of legalized slavery in the state, African Americans played an integral role in the Texas story. Weaving together American history, dramatic family chronicle, and searing episodes of memoir, Annette Gordon-Reed’s On Juneteenth provides a historian’s view of the country’s long road to Juneteenth, recounting both its origins in Texas and the enormous hardships that African Americans have endured in the century since, from Reconstruction through Jim Crow and beyond.Īll too aware of the stories of cowboys, ranchers, and oilmen that have long dominated the lore of the Lone Star State, Gordon-Reed - herself a Texas native and the descendant of enslaved people brought to Texas as early as the 1820s - forges a new and profoundly truthful narrative of her home state, with implications for us all. Her personal experience – that of a Black woman who loves Texas in spite of its checkered past – is the perfect gateway into this complex narrative.The essential, sweeping story of Juneteenth’s integral importance to American history, as told by a Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and Texas native. Yet she clearly feels a deep love for her home state. By sharing her experiences and those of her family, she shows the cost exacted by unjust systems. Gordon-Reed is a master researcher and a magnificent storyteller, and she avoids the use of heavy historical terminology. But the addition of her own narrative brings the text to life. functions as a clear portrait of the diversity and centuries-old history of Texas, which would have been powerful enough on its own. Gordon-Reed not only bridges that gap but adds a sense of urgency as she dives deeply into her own life – the story of a Black girl growing up in Texas. So many contemporary celebrations of Juneteenth offer no real connection to the holiday’s roots. I thought I knew about Juneteenth until I read her latest book, which provides important historical context.
Through a mix of memoir, analysis, and seldom-shared stories, historian and Harvard law professor Annette Gordon-Reed stitches a clear image of the economic and political reality of slavery in the Lone Star State. a perfectly quilted work of American history framed by the stories of Black Americans in Texas.
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