On Saturday, we celebrate Juneteenth, the day 145 years ago when news finally made its way to Texas that slavery was no longer the law of the land. It was on June 19th 1865 that Union soldiers arrived at Galveston, Texas with word that the Civil War had ended and that enslaved Africans in the region were free.

VIA YAHOO NEWS A new report from the State Department finds that more than 12 million people worldwide are victims of “trafficking in persons” — trapped in forced labor, bonded labor or forced prostitution. But just 4,166 people were convicted of trafficking last year, the report says.

jubilee (Biblical) – 1. in Hebrew Scriptures, a year of rest to be observed by the Israelites every 50th year during which slaves were to be set free. 2. celebrations held by African-American slaves, usually at Christmas and Easter, which included respite from labor, feasting, music and dancing.

VIA CNN Betty Kilby was gripped with apprehension. Descendants of the white family that enslaved her kin were coming to dinner. She scrolled through a mental Rolodex of relatives who might flip out. Her brothers had already asked her: Why would you want to meet the family of those who held our loved ones in […]

VIA: www.newsone.com Emmitt Smith was on the TV show “Who Do You Think You Are” and found out about his heritage. Through DNA records and wills, marriage licenses and other documents the producers of the show traced Emmit Smith’s lineage back to slavery, where he found out his ancestors were bred by a family that […]