Juneteenth is a portmanteau of June and nineteenth, and is also called Freedom Day, Jubilee Day, Liberation Day or Emancipation Day.
Join our family of readers for as little as $5 per month and support local, unbiased journalism.
Already have an account? Log in to continue. Otherwise, follow the link below to join.
Please log in to continue |
CLEWISTON- The second annual Juneteenth Festival is set to have a Community Day at the Harlem Community Tree Park on Saturday, June 19. The event will include a parade, Black-owned business expo, vendors, music from DJ Onebud, and some inspirational guest speakers. There will also be plenty for the kids, including a bounce house, rock climbing wall, bungee trampoline, and face painting.
Juneteenth is a combination of June and nineteenth, and is also called Freedom Day, Jubilee Day, Liberation Day or Emancipation Day. It is the oldest, nationally celebrated, commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States.
Celebrations are held on this day, in honor of the date Union soldiers, led by Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger, landed at Galveston, Texas on June 19, 1865, with news that the war had ended and that the enslaved were now free. This was two and a half years after President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation became official on Jan. 1, 1863.
Maj. Gen. Granger read the following proclamation: “The people of Texas are informed that in accordance with a Proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired laborer.”
Jubilant celebrations followed the reading of the proclamation, which began a tradition that has lasted for 155 years, and continues to this day, celebrated in cities across America.
Guest speakers will include: Director of Center Advancement at Pace Center for Girls, Tekoa Pouerie, Lead Pastor of Tabernacle of Witness Deliverance Church (TWDC), Jeremy Greaves, and owner of K.A.S. Consultancy, Keasha Starks.
Admission to the event is free. It is $50 to be a vendor for the day. There will also be a chance to win a $100 prize for the Best Juneteenth Outfit contest.
There will also be a kickball tournament the following Sunday, June20, 2021 at the AA THIMAS hall Park, next to the pavilion. Sign ups for teams is currently open.
For more information about these event, Contact Dr. Janet Holmes Peeples at 786-245-1067.
