The Journey to Juneteenth: uncovering the history and making of a federal holiday

FILE - People commemorate Juneteenth with car parades and signs, celebrating the day enslaved Black Americans were freed, while the U.S. government’s acceptance of the occasion was delayed. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu, File) ORG XMIT: NYAB305 (Ringo H.W. Chiu, AP Photos)

Americans will soon celebrate Juneteenth, marking the day when the last enslaved people in the United States learned they were free.

For generations, Black Americans have recognized the end of one of the darkest chapters in U.S. history with joy, in the form of parades, street festivals, musical performances or cookouts.