For only the third year, Juneteenth is officially observed across the nation as a Federal holiday this Monday, June 19 - thanks to the tireless work of Black historians and activists across Texas. We're proud to welcome this week one of the pre-eminent authorities on Juneteenth: Donald Payton is president of the African American Genealogy Interest Group, former Dallas County Historical Commissioner, and a member of the special state committee that originally elevated Juneteenth to state holiday status - “the unofficial historian of Black Dallas”. We also welcome as a special guest host Kardal Coleman, the freshly-elected Chair of the Dallas County Democratic Party and co-founder of the Liberation Fund, a national civil rights organization dedicated to providing legal representation to defendants in need.

Learn more about Donald Payton at https://blog.smu.edu/theanti-apartheidmovementinnorthtexas/biography/don-payton/, and follow Kardal Coleman at https://twitter.com/KardalColeman.

Thanks as always for listening - and please consider becoming part of the Progress Texas family by joining forces with us during our June membership drive! Learn more at https://progresstexas.org/donate.