At 100 years old, Dr. Opal Lee has lived through a century of American history, including some of its most painful chapters. At 12, Lee experienced that history firsthand when a white mob burned down her family’s home in Fort Worth, Texas, because they were Black. Decades later, that childhood experience became part of the reason she dedicated herself to making sure Americans understood Juneteenth and the significance of June 19, 1865, when news of emancipation finally reached enslaved people in Galveston, Texas.
Known as the “Grandmother of Juneteenth,” Lee spent years walking, speaking, petitioning, and educating communities about the holiday before Juneteenth became a federal holiday in 2021. Now, as she celebrates her 100th birthday on October 7, construction on the National Juneteenth Museum in her hometown of Fort Worth will begin, bringing a remarkable full-circle moment to a life devoted to remembering where we came from and thinking about what we do with that history. Ahead of the milestone, Lee reflects on the little girl she once was, the meaning behind Juneteenth, and the responsibility that comes with freedom.
The Grandmother of Juneteenth Speaks
2UrbanGirls: You were 12 when your family’s home in Fort Worth was burned down by a white mob because you were Black. When you think about that little girl now, what do you think she would make of the fact that, 88 years later, her hometown is building a national museum around the history she lived?
Opal Lee: I don’t think that little girl could have imagined any of this. When you’re 12 years old, and something like that happens to your family, you’re not thinking about museums or history. You’re just living through it…