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Juneteenth 1865-2023: Freedom to learn

Juneteenth 2023 dives into education before, during and after slavery; the creation of HBCUs, its significance, and how Juneteenth is being taught today.

Chloe Alexander, Lea Wilson

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Published: 12:22 PM CDT June 16, 2023
Updated: 8:17 AM CDT June 19, 2023

Education for Black Americans didn’t come easy.

Because Black Americans were held back from freedom during slavery, it also held them back from education, and to this day, the Black community is still feeling the ramifications.

Due to the lack of resources, finances and a multitude of other external factors, many Black Americans don’t have the opportunity to take advantage of a higher education. For example, only 35% of Black Americans have associate degrees or higher, and Black student enrollment has also declined over the last 10 years, according to a Lumina Foundation-Gallup 2023 State of Higher Education study.

When there is low enrollment, specifically for historically black colleges -- also known as HBCUs -- there are fewer resources and funding available for the institutes that paved the way for many freed slaves to receive an education.

The last enslaved Black Americans were told they were free in Galveston, Texas on June 19, 1865, also known as Juneteenth. The birth of two of the biggest HBCUs in the country came soon after -- Texas Southern University and Prairie View A&M University.

PVAMU is a direct result of Juneteenth. Once enslaved Black Americans in the South found out they were free, the land PVAMU sits on went from a plantation to providing them an education. 

TSU professor Dr. Karen L. Kossie-Chernyshev said the history of HBCUs is directly related to racism and segregation.

“Our nation wasn’t ready for people of African descent to study with white Americans,” she said.

Over the years, many Black Americans, and people of other races, have decided to follow in their ancestors’ footsteps and attend an HBCU, which has provided the campuses with exposure.

To know an HBCU is to know homecomings, marching bands, step shows, and more importantly – culture. To celebrate HBCUs and the history of Black education, we have to take a look back at how it all got started, which for some, could be a hard story to digest.

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