I’ve wished to rejoice Juneteenth for some time. I didn’t develop up figuring out a lot concerning the vacation, and it wasn’t one thing that was celebrated in my household. I’ve been to quite a few Fourth of July celebrations, cookouts, and so forth., however I don’t bear in mind any of them centering round what was really being celebrated that day: America’s independence. We had been simply getting collectively as a household, which we by no means actually wanted an excuse to do. Meals performed an enormous half in that, so the Fourth of July was simply one other vacation to which completely different relations might convey their finest dish and break bread collectively. As soon as we moved to Texas, I grew to become much more occupied with studying concerning the vacation – particularly once I discovered that Galveston was only some hours away.
The Fourth of July marks the day that, in 1776, America’s 13 colonies grew to become freed from British rule. Nevertheless, the enslavement of (most) Black folks didn’t formally finish till the Emancipation Proclamation grew to become official in 1873. The caveat or asterisk to this assertion is that there have been enslaved folks dwelling in Galveston, TX who had no concept that the Emancipation Proclamation had been signed. The truth is, it wasn’t till two years afterward June 19 (therefore “Juneteenth”) that phrase reached the enslaved folks in Galveston that that they had, actually, been freed two years prior. The celebrations that assuredly occurred that day laid the inspiration for generations to come back.
Attributable to a collection of latest uprisings within the wake of police brutality, there was an pressing incentive to rejoice the vacation throughout the nation. Firms like Amazon and Nike have declared Juneteenth a paid vacation for workers, and in 2020, Bexar county declared Juneteenth a county-wide vacation.
Listed below are some issues that you are able to do to rejoice with your loved ones if that is your first-time celebrating the vacation:
1. Find out about Juneteenth’s Historical past and Significance
Begin by studying books concerning the vacation. I’m a agency believer within the energy of books, particularly for explaining new data to younger folks. There are a plethora of youngsters’s books about Juneteenth! Listed below are a number of nice tried-and-tested choices:
All Totally different Now: Juneteenth, the First Day of Freedom by Angela Johnson
Juneteenth for Mazie by Floyd Cooper
Freedom’s Items: A Juneteenth Story by Valerie Wesley
2. Get pleasure from a Meal with Your Household
Meals brings folks collectively, so fireplace up the grill or oven and lower up some summer season fruit. Keep in mind that Juneteenth was a day of celebration, so preserve that feeling on the coronary heart of your feast. Use this as a time to attach and spend time along with your family members, honoring and remembering the meals that these courageous, previously enslaved people cooked collectively in recognition of their dignity and freedom.
3. Have a Household Dialogue about Huge Issues: Freedom, Justice, Household Values
Holidays – particularly these in the summertime – are a good time to get collectively across the desk and have discussions (particularly with the youngest family members) about your loved ones values. What’s necessary to your loved ones? Why? You could possibly even draw up a household mission assertion! Inside these conversations, you possibly can present a a layered and productive dialogue of necessary points like freedom and justice. Begin by wanting up the definitions of those phrases, after which talk about their meanings collectively. That is undoubtedly a dialog to revisit every year, and you may deepen the dialog as your youngsters grow old.
4. Sprinklers and Fireworks
Very similar to Fourth of July celebrations, convey out the fireworks (whether it is authorized in your space), sparklers, noisemakers, and so forth. to rejoice! You may actually do no matter you want to mark this big day. Juneteenth must be a day of celebration, so make it one to recollect to your youngsters with these enjoyable extras.
5. Donate to a Related Group
Develop the dialog of your loved ones values by selecting a company to donate to. Analysis completely different organizations collectively, making certain that they each align along with your values and middle and prioritize Black people. No quantity is just too small to make a distinction. Listed below are a number of strategies to get you began:
An replace from the ACM Workforce:
Here’s a checklist of Juneteenth occasions taking place in San Antonio and Austin in June 2024:
SATURDAY, JUNE 1
Black Women Do Bike San Antonio 8 am- 17612 Vance Jackson, San AntonioTo be taught extra about BGDB-
FRIDAY, JUNE 7
Black Historical past Movie Sequence – Little Carver Auditorium, San Antonio
SATURDAY, JUNE 8
Juneteenth Prayer Breakfast, 9 am – The Witte Museum, San Antonio
African American Guide Pageant, 12-4 pm – Carver Library, San Antonio
MONDAY, JUNE 10
A Evening of Soul, 6-9 pm – La Villita, San Antonio
SATURDAY, JUNE 15
Freedom Parade, 10 am – Sam Houston Excessive College, San Antonio
Juneteenth Pageant Well being Truthful, 11 am – 5 pm – Comanche Park #2, San Antonio
SA Block Celebration and Truthful, 3-9 pm – Crockett Park, San Antonio
Juneteenth Pageant, 11 am – 11 pm – Comanche Park #2, San Antonio
Central Texas Juneteenth Parade and Pageant– Rosewood Park, Austin
Austin’s Juneteenth Celebration: Keep Black and Reside– Austin
Black Makers Market– Austin
SUNDAY, JUNE 16
Celebrating Fathers Day and Juneteenth, 2-5 pm – St Philips Faculty, San Antonio
nineteenth Fest– Waterloo Park, Austin
TUESDAY, JUNE 18
Freedom!, 5:30- 10 pm – The Tobin
Black Heritage and Black Freedom, 4-6 pm – Thinkery, Austin
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19
Nationwide Day of Celebration, 10 am – 8 pm – Second Baptist Church, San Antonio
Juneteenth Golf Match – Hyatt Hill Nation, San Antonio
Juneteenth Summer season Solstice, 6-9 pm – Gardopia Gardens, San Antonio
Pageant and Fireworks, 6-9 pm – True Imaginative and prescient Church, San Antonio
SATURDAY, JUNE 22
Juneteenth Celebration – Neill-Cochran Home Museum, Austin
** This submit was up to date in 2024 by the ACM group to incorporate new dates, assets, and county data **
