Juneteenth National Independence Day (June 19, 2025) Copyrighted
June 2, 2025
City of Dubuque PROCLAMATIONS # 2.
City Council
ITEM TITLE: Juneteenth National Independence Day (June 19, 2025)
SUMMARY: On behalf of the Multicultural Family Center.
SUGGUESTED
DISPOSITION:
ATTAC H M ENTS:
1. Proclamation
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WHEREAS, on June 19th, 1865, more than 2 years after President Lincoln signed the
Emancipation Proclamation, Enslaved Americans in Galveston, Texas finally
received word that they were free from bondage; and
WHEREAS, Juneteenth commemorates this day when those who were formerly enslaved
began to build new lives and new traditions that we honor today; and
WHEREAS, Juneteenth is the oldest, nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of
slavery in the United States and commemorates African American achievement,
and reminds us of our willingness to learn and emerge from our darkest moments
with hope, purpose, and resolve; and
WHEREAS, on this commemoration, we recommit ourselves to the work of equity, equality,
and justice and we celebrate more than a century of African American resilience
in the City of Dubuque and beyond; and
WHEREAS, on June 17, 2021, President Biden signed the bill making Juneteenth the eleventh
American federal holiday and the first to obtain legal observance as a federal
holiday since Martin Luther King Jr. Day was designated in 1983; and
WHEREAS, since 2023, the City of Dubuque has recognized Juneteenth as a paid holiday;
and
WHEREAS, Dubuque's Multicultural Family Center is hosting a Juneteenth celebration
weekend from Friday, June 13t" through Sunday, June 15'" at Jackson Park.
NOW THEREFORE, I, BRAD M. CAVANAGH, MAYOR OF THE CITY OF DUBUQUE, IOWA,
ON BEHALF OF THE CITY COUNCIL, STAFF, AND RESIDENTS OF DUBUQUE DO
HEREBY PROCLAIM THE 19T" OF JUNE, 2025, AS
"JUNETEENTH NATIONAL INDEPENDENCE DAY"
IN THE CITY OF DUBUQUE, IOWA, AND URGE RESIDENTS TO SUPPORT AND ENDORSE
THE PRACTICE AND POLICY OF EQUITY AND FREEDOM FOR ALL.
IN WITNESS THEREOF, I have hereunto set my
hand and caused the Great Seal of the City of
Dubuque to be affixed this 2nd day of June 2025.
Brad M. Cavanagh, Mayor
Attest:
Adrienne N. Breitfelder, CMC, City Clerk
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2025: Submitted by Karla Escobar, Assistant Director of the Multicultural Family Center, and
accepted by Karla Escobar and MFC Board Member Mary Ann Conzett.
2024: Submitted by Sarah Peterson, Assistant Director of the Multicultural Family Center,
1157 Central Avenue. Accepted by Multicultural Family Center Director Antonio Mouzon.
2022 submitted by Collins Eboh, Interim Equity and human Rights Director, accepted by
Mayor Cavanagh.
2019: Submitted by Sarah Peterson, Assistant Director of the Multicultural Family Center,
1157 Central Avenue. Accepted Juneteenth Committee Member Ernest Jackson.
2018: Submitted by Sarah Peterson, Assistant Director of the Multicultural Family Center,
1157 Central Avenue. Accepted Juneteenth Committee Member Ernest Jackson.
2017: Submitted and accepted by Dr. Farris Muhammad, Director, Multicultural Family
Center, 1157 Central Avenue.
2016: Submitted and accepted by Farris Muhammad, Director; and Sarah Peterson,
Assistant Director of the Multicultural Family Center, 1157 Central Avenue.
2015: Submitted and accepted by Dora Serna of the Multicultural Family Center, 1157
Central Avenue.
2014: Submitted and accepted by Dora Serna and Marrichelle Glover of the Multicultural
Family Center, 1157 Central Avenue.
2013: Submitted by Vice-Chair R.R.S. Stewart of the Dubuque Human Rights Commission
(DHRC) on behalf of DHRC and Dora Serna on behalf of the Multicultural Family Center
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