Recent Publications

THE UNFINISHED REPUBLIC:  Reflections and Projections on Juneteenth, July Fourth, and America’s Continuing Contestation Over Freedom: Four Questions for the Next Fifty Years

In 2026, the United States arrives at an extraordinary convergence of history. The nation commemorates the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence while continuing to celebrate Juneteenth, the newest federal holiday, which honors the destruction of slavery and the long-delayed arrival of freedom to the last large community of enslaved Americans in Galveston, Texas. These commemorations are often treated as separate historical events. They are, in fact, inseparable. One celebrates the birth of the Republic. The other commemorates one of its most profound transformations.

Together they invite Americans to ask not simply what happened, but what kind of nation has been unfolding over the past 250 years—and what kind of nation do we hope to become during the next fifty? (continue reading here)

Why Ohio’s Underground Railroad story still matters — from the Ohio River to the Combahee 

Ohio carries history beneath its landscapes — stories that cross rivers, forests, towns, and generations. We know Harriet Tubman’s name. We know the broad outline of the Underground Railroad. But too often we overlook the depth of Ohio’s role — from the Appalachian foothills of Athens County to the communities of Springfield and beyond — in shaping one of the most courageous networks of resistance in American history.

The Ohio River formed much of the boundary between slavery and freedom. Yet crossing that river was only the beginning. Once freedom seekers entered Ohio, they moved through vast networks of support — including churches, farms, barns, attics, Black communities, abolitionist households — all part of what historians now recognize as thousands of miles of organized resistance across the state. (continue reading here)

VIDEO:  What They NEVER TOLD US About JUNETEENTH | Elder Jim Embry Speaks | Black Stories Ep. 2, 

Recorded June 2025:  Elder Embry, who served as a funeral marshal at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s funeral and has been a frontline activist for over 50 years, takes us deep into the meaning, the myths, and the missed truths surrounding Juneteenth.

We Celebrate Juneteenth as Emancipation, Reunification and Subjugation:  Juneteenth has a Complicated History that We Need to Understand Even as We Celebrate

By Jim Embry 

June 16, 2023, 

Updated Jun 17, 2025

Many Americans will gather on June 19 to commemorate Juneteenth that is now recognized by our federal government, 28 states and the District of Columbia. The celebration of Juneteenth — which commemorates June 19, 1865, as the end of slavery when General Granger read his General Orders No. 3 in Galveston, Texas — has gained popularity in recent years. But Juneteenth didn’t become important because it became a national holiday, and it didn’t become important in 2020 after the unfortunate murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. It has long been acknowledged by many African American families and communities.

And for me, since I had two great grand-fathers who as members of the US Colored troops were in Galveston a month before General Granger arrived and who were also at Appomattox Courthouse when General Lee surrendered on April 9, 1865, Juneteenth is deeply personal to me. These ancestors have beseeched me to tell their story which means challenging the predominant narrative and sharing a more inclusive interpretation of Juneteenth that can then provide justice for how we commemorate it. (continue reading here)