Johnson to discuss history of Juneteenth

Dr. Jessica Johnson will discuss the importance of Juneteenth within our culture and history from 12:10-1:40 p.m., Wednesday, February 12, 2025, in Galvin Hall 101. 

Juneteenth is a federal holiday celebrated on June 19 each year. It commemorates the day in 1865 that the US Army began the final enforcement of the Emancipation Proclamation in Texas with a proclamation from General Gordon Granger. 

“Juneteenth holds historical significance because it symbolizes the ever-present hope in our nation's ideals and reminds us that Godly justice will always prevail against the strongholds of bigotry and hatred,” Johnson said. 

Johnson’s talk is part of the 2025 celebration of Black History Month.

Other ways to access Dr. Johnson’s talk

Zoom: go.osu.edu/lima-juneteenth-zoom

About the speaker

Dr. Jessica Johnson is a lecturer in English at The Ohio State University at Lima and a columnist whose works examine faith-based, racial and social issues in popular culture, higher education, sports and politics. She is the author of Salt of the Earth Georgia Boy, a memoir chronicling the life of Dr. Wilburn H. Weddington Sr., who was born a sharecropper in 1924 in Hiram, Georgia, and became the first black physician to be promoted to full professor at Ohio State’s College of Medicine.