Ways to Celebrate Juneteenth

Milwaukee Celebrates 48th Annual Juneteenth Day Festival 2019

Source: Dylan Buell / Getty

Juneteenth is Black History, and Black History is American History. For this special day, we’ve gathered a list of events taking place for Juneteenth, but first, let’s take a look at why we honor and celebrate this day.

While Juneteenth celebrates the end of slavery in the U.S. on June 19, 1865, Juneteenth is not the day that enslaved people were freed, or the day that slavery ended (per Juneteenth.com). This day actually marks the day when enslaved Texans found out they had been free for over two years.

On June 19, 1865, Major General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, TX and announced the end of the Civil War and the end of slavery. However, the Emancipation Proclamation came two and a half years earlier on January 1, 1863.

Many enslavers continued to hold enslaved people captive after the announcement, so Juneteenth became a symbolic date representing African-American freedom.

It is a day, and sometimes a longer period of time, that’s marked with celebrations, lectures, and days of service. Below we’ve listed — via Juneteenth.com — many of the events taking place for Juneteenth.

Juneteenth Events:

Keys to Black Wealth Summit

Oklahoma NAACP Asks For Moment Of Silence At Tulsa Juneteenth

Juneteenth Soul Blues Fest Kicks Off in East Austin

Juneteenth Celebration in North Charleston recognizes end to …

Flint gathers for 25th annual city-wide Juneteenth celebration

Entertainment: Express, Juneteenth festivities, more

150th Juneteenth to be celebrated Saturday in Denver

Jersey City Juneteenth celebration marred by Charleston massacre

Charleston, Juneteenth and What It Means to be Black in America

Milwaukee celebrates Juneteenth

Runners honor Juneteenth at the Tidal Basin