PHILADELPHIA – This week marks the 156th anniversary of Juneteenth, the oldest nationally celebrated holiday marking the end of slavery in the United States. Juneteenth falls on Saturday, June 19, this year, and Stradley Ronon will close early on Friday, June 18, to mark this important date in history as a way to recognize our collective past and the lasting effects of racism in this country.
On June 19, 1865, Major General Granger of the Union Army landed in Galveston, Texas, and informed slaves that the Civil War ended, and slavery had been abolished. Since then, almost every state has celebrated the anniversary of that occasion, which has come to be known as Juneteenth. It is an important day to reflect on the struggles and progress of Black Americans, both past and present, and to rededicate ourselves to take active steps towards ending racism in America.
As members of the legal profession, Stradley Ronon has a deeper responsibility to achieve racial justice and dismantle racist laws, policies and practices. The racial injustices that the Black community experiences remind us that the U.S. still has a long way to go to achieve equality and liberty for all. For true progress to be made, we must be more than non-racist. We must be anti-racist and take steps with meaningful action. To that end, firm leadership embraced the observance of this important day and provided the entire Stradley Ronon community with resources on how to observe and celebrate the holiday.
To learn more about the firm’s commitment to diversity and inclusion, please visit:
Stradley.com/Diversity.
About Stradley Ronon
Counseling clients since 1926, Stradley Ronon has helped private and public companies – from small businesses to Fortune 500 corporations – achieve their goals by providing pragmatic, value-driven legal counsel. With offices in seven strategic locations, our responsive team of more than 200 attorneys seamlessly addresses the full spectrum of our clients’ needs, ranging from sophisticated corporate transactions to complex commercial litigation.