The everyday strength of fathers deserves more than a single day of recognition. It deserves a lifetime of appreciation. But since this is your moment, we just want to say—thank you.

More Black fathers are telling their own stories. Through books, essays, and poems, they are sharing what fatherhood means to them. These stories are not written to prove anything. They exist because they are honest and necessary. They reflect real life and real love.

Juneteenth is often taught as the day slavery was abolished—a day of freedom and joy. In school, we’re told that Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, and that was that. But the truth is far more complicated. To truly understand Juneteenth, we have to go back to the Civil War and examine the reality on the ground.