On Juneteenth

Pulitzer Prize–winning historian and Texas native Annette Gordon-Reed weaves together American history, family chronicle, and memoir in On Juneteenth, uncovering the integral importance of Juneteenth to American history. Exploring the hardships African Americans have endured from Reconstruction to Jim Crow, she revisits the forgotten stories of Black Texans in the Lone Star State. She reveals the role slavery and race-based economy played in the Texas independence, Mexican American War, and Civil War.

On Juneteenth critically revises conventional renderings of Texas and national history and highlights the ongoing fight for equality. Includes 2 black-and-white illustrations.