Because the struggle for equality remains far from over, the University of Illinois Cancer Center honors, celebrates and reflects on Juneteenth, the day (June 19,1865) when the last enslaved people in the United States learned they were free.
The Cancer Center, part of UI Health at the University of Illinois Chicago, has a deep and abiding commitment to health equity.
Our discoveries help lead to equitable precision cancer prevention and care that eliminate cancer health disparities in our communities. We elevate the voices of our diverse communities as stakeholders in all that we do. We are dedicated to educating and training diverse cancer researchers and physicians. And, we are committed to addressing the disproportionate effect of climate change on racial and ethnic minority communities.
President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 but it wasn’t until 1865 that the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution abolished slavery and the Civil Rights Act of 1866 established people born in the United States were citizens.
Juneteenth was long observed as a holiday before being officially designated a federal holiday in 2021.