News United Airlines Honors Juneteenth With an All-Black Crew on a Flight From Houston to Chicago "This flight represents our commitment to doing our part to create a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace and world." By Alison Fox Alison Fox Instagram Twitter Alison Fox is a journalist whose work regularly appears in Travel + Leisure. She has also written for Parents.com, The Wall Street Journal, and amNewYork. She focuses on travel news and feature stories based on personal experiences and interviews. Born in Brooklyn and a lifelong traveler, she developed a love for exploring the world at an early age and hopes to visit every country. * Traveled to 50+ countries * Received a master's degree in journalism from Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications at Northwestern University * Received a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Wisconsin-Madison Travel + Leisure Editorial Guidelines Published on June 22, 2021 Share Tweet Pin Email United Airlines celebrated Juneteenth with a special flight from Houston to Chicago with an all-Black crew from the flight attendants and pilots to the gate agents, and more. The flight, UA1258, took off from Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport at 10:30 a.m. and flew to Chicago's O'Hare International Airport, commemorating the holiday and celebrating the launch of United's Black Business Resource Group, the airline shared with Travel + Leisure. "As a global airline driven by our purpose and values, we're in the business of bringing people together," Jessica Kimbrough, United's chief diversity, equity, and inclusion officer, told T+L. "This flight represents our commitment to doing our part to create a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace and world." To celebrate the momentous flight, United covered the gate in balloons and waved the plane off with a water cannon salute. Courtesy of United Airlines "Over 150 years since the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation by Abraham Lincoln, as African Americans we have walked, we have run, we have been driving, we have been sailing. But today signifies that we have the potential of leaving the ground and now even African Americans are flying amongst the stars," Houston's Mayor Sylvester Turner said during the celebration. "The best is yet to come." Juneteenth commemorates the day Major General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, to inform the community enslaved people were free, more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation. Last week, the day was officially declared a federal holiday with President Joe Biden signing it into law. "Today we consecrate Juneteenth for what it ought to be - what it must be - a national holiday," Biden said in a video posted on Twitter, adding it was the "first new national holiday since the creation of Martin Luther King [Jr.] holiday nearly four decades ago." Alison Fox is a contributing writer for Travel + Leisure. When she's not in New York City, she likes to spend her time at the beach or exploring new destinations and hopes to visit every country in the world. Follow her adventures on Instagram. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit