Juneteenth, which takes place on June 19, is our country’s newest federal holiday. It has sometimes been called “America’s second Independence Day,” which is fitting: It symbolizes a step in the long and often difficult journey toward actually fulfilling the promises that were made on July 4, 1776.

It’s no secret that when the drafters of the Declaration of Independence wrote that “all men are created equal,” they didn’t mean everyone. The promise of equality didn’t apply to enslaved people within the borders of what would soon become a new country. Nor did it apply to women, whose right to vote would not be recognized nationally until the 20th century. 

The ideals of self-determination, so eloquently stated by the delegates who assembled in Philadelphia in 1776, could only be enjoyed by a small portion of the new country’s population, which is why the abolitionist Frederick Douglass asked, in one of his most famous speeches, “What to the slave is the Fourth of July?”

Juneteenth marks the date when, at the end of the Civil War, Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger of the Union Army told enslaved people in Texas that they were finally free. Though it was one of many milestones in that fight, it has come to serve as a symbol for all of them. 

Early celebrations of Juneteenth date back as far as 1866, the year after Granger’s proclamation. They spread quickly across the South, and eventually across the rest of the country. The first federal legislation to recognize Juneteenth as a national holiday was actually introduced by a congresswoman from Michigan, Barbara-Rose Collins. But it didn’t become an official federal holiday until just three years ago.

Juneteenth deserves to be celebrated as a national holiday equal in importance to Independence Day. The Fourth of July represents a promise — but only the beginning of the fulfillment of that promise. Respect for history demands that we acknowledge not just the original promise, but the gradual steps toward making it a reality for all, not just a few.

By the same token, the 19th Amendment — which extended the right to vote to women — was ratified on Aug. 18, 1920, and the ratification was certified on Aug. 26, a date that has become known as Women’s Equality Day.

Maybe it’s time to start viewing the Fourth of July, Juneteenth, and the anniversary of the 19th Amendment as part of a summerlong celebration — not just of American ideals, but of the process of making sure those ideals are truly accessible to all.