Opal Lee

Dr. Opal Lee is a retired educator, community activist, and civil rights leader widely recognized as the Grandmother of Juneteenth. A former teacher and counselor, Lee played a central role in the movement to establish Juneteenth as a federally recognized holiday. Only three generations removed from enslaved ancestors, her personal connection to June 19 was shaped early in life when, during a Juneteenth celebration, a white mob burned her family's home to the ground. This traumatic event motivated Lee to educate the public about the significance of Juneteenth beyond its festivities.

Lee graduated from high school at age 16 and earned a bachelor's degree in elementary education from Wiley College in Marshall, Texas. She later obtained a master's degree in counseling and guidance from North Texas University. For 24 years, Lee worked with children in the Fort Worth Independent School District as a schoolteacher and counselor. After retiring from education, she became involved in several community organizations, including the Tarrant County Black Historical and Genealogical Society, and founded Unity Unlimited Inc., a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing educational activities and resources to promote unity and harmony. Lee also operates a three-acre farm that supplies fresh produce to the Community Food Bank, serving hundreds of families each week.

Lee advocated for a federal Juneteenth holiday by leading annual 2.5-mile walks, symbolizing the 2.5 years it took for news of the Emancipation Proclamation to reach Texas. In her late eighties, she brought national attention to Juneteenth by organizing a 1,400-mile walk from Texas to Washington, D.C., walking in 2.5-mile increments to commemorate the delay in emancipation. Lee marched in cities across the United States, including Fort Smith and Little Rock, Arkansas; Las Vegas, Nevada; Madison and Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Atlanta, Georgia; Selma, Alabama; and throughout the Carolinas. She also promoted a petition for a Juneteenth federal holiday, which received more than 1 million signatures.

Lee's efforts culminated in the passage of a bill making Juneteenth a federal holiday. She was an honored guest at the bill signing ceremony and received national recognition for her advocacy. Members of Congress nominated Lee for the Nobel Peace Prize, and she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor.

Lee's legacy is recognized across various platforms. She authored the children's book "Juneteenth: A Children's Story" and is the subject of Alice Faye Duncan's "Opal Lee and What It Means to Be Free." Lee received special thanks in the credits for "Miss Juneteenth," an independent film honoring the holiday. She was named Texan of the Year by The Dallas Morning News for her activism. Lee has led a walk every Juneteenth since the holiday's establishment and is a driving force behind the national Juneteenth Museum planned for Fort Worth. The $70 million, 50,000-square-foot museum will be located on Fort Worth's South Side, where Lee has operated her own Juneteenth museum. Now in her late nineties, Dr. Opal Lee remains a prominent figure in American civil rights history, exemplifying perseverance, community engagement, and the ongoing pursuit of freedom.