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Left to right: Tashara Parker, Opal Lee and Henry Louis Gates Jr. sit onstage during a Juneteenth presentation of Uniting Voices for the National Juneteenth Museum speaker series on June 6, 2024, at the I.M. Terrell Academy for STEM and VPA. (Camilo Diaz | Fort Worth Report)
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Henry Louis Gates Jr., host of the PBS hit series “Finding Your Roots,” used his star power to support the forthcoming National Juneteenth Museum at its June 6 “Uniting Voices” event.“The only reason I’m here,” the Harvard professor and author quipped as Opal Lee, the “Grandmother of Juneteenth,” walked onto the stage, National Medal of Freedom in tow. President Joe Biden credited Lee’s walk from Fort Worth to Washington D.C. as influential when he signed the 2021 law that officially recognized Juneteenth as a federal holiday. 

Opal “Grandmother of Juneteenth” Lee shows her National Medal of Freedom to the crowd June 6, 2024, at the I.M. Terrell Academy for STEM and VPA. (Camilo Diaz | Fort Worth Report)

Gates also credited Lee at the June 6 event. The West Virginia native didn’t grow up celebrating the holiday, Gates said, noting he first heard its history when he was at Yale University.The holiday celebrates the anniversary of U.S. Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger’s 1865 ride to Galveston where he issued General Order No. 3, which informed enslaved people of their freedom. The news reached residents about two and half years after President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. 

“Finding Your Roots” host Henry Louis Gates Jr. speaks during the Juneteenth presentation of Uniting Voices for the National Juneteenth Museum speaker series on June 6, 2024, at the I.M. Terrell Academy for STEM and VPA. (Camilo Diaz | Fort Worth Report)

Gates described how the holiday grew organically after a group of Black people gathered together one year after Granger’s arrival. Over the years, the celebration spread geographically.Its prominence surged after the Poor People’s Campaign in the 1960s, and again following Lee’s petition to make it a federal holiday.“Now everybody knows because of her,” Gates said. 

The crowd listens to the Juneteenth presentation of Uniting Voices given by Opal Lee and Henry Louis Gates Jr. on June 6, 2024, at the I.M. Terrell Academy for STEM and VPA. (Camilo Diaz | Fort Worth Report)

When Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker spoke before the keynote she said that the National Juneteenth Museum is what she is most excited about for the city.“I know you share that excitement and sense of purpose and, importantly, the ownership to make sure this museum comes to fruition,” Parker said. “This is a museum for the entire country to celebrate our country’s history and, importantly, our African American history. But it will not happen without this city rallying around this cause.” 

Opal Lee smiles to the crowd June 6, 2024, at the I.M. Terrell Academy for STEM and VPA. (Camilo Diaz | Fort Worth Report)

The National Juneteenth Museum, which is expected to open in 2026, continues to work toward fundraising $70 million. In February, the nonprofit’s CEO told the Fort Worth Report that the organization was about halfway to its goal.To make this museum into a reality and spread a message of love instead of hate, Lee doled out familiar advice: “Be a committee of one.” 

Marcheta Fornoff covers arts and culture for the Fort Worth Report. Reach her at marcheta.fornoff@fortworthreport.org. At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.