Celebrating Juneteenth
Juneteenth, also known as Emancipation Day, will be celebrated locally in various ways through this weekend.
The city of Gainesville has sponsored what it billed as Journey to Juneteenth with programs all month long and special events leading up to the holiday on June 19. Event organizers say Journey to Juneteenth aims to honor the past and celebrate the present through community and connection.
Juneteenth, which is observed on June 19 each year, is the oldest known celebration to commemorate the end of slavery in the United States. On June 19, 1865, Union soldiers led by Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger reached Galveston, Texas, with the news that the Civil War had ended and the enslaved were now free. Emancipation Day commemorates the end of slavery in Florida when on May 20, 1865, 11 days after the Civil War ended, Union General Edward M. McCook read the Emancipation Proclamation in Tallahassee. Emancipation Day and Juneteenth took place two and a half years
Home/Arts and Entertainment/Journey To Juneteenth Scavenger Hunt Highlights Historical Black Figures
Journey To Juneteenth Scavenger Hunt Highlights Historical Black Figures
By Curtis Michaud
May 24, 2021
Depot Park was full of young children Saturday looking for combs, chalk and photos of Black leaders from Alachua County. The children’s scavenger hunt for Black history artifacts was one of the first events in Gainesville’s monthlong “Journey to Juneteenth” celebration.
From May 20 to June 19, the city is officially celebrating the emancipation of enslaved African Americans. It’s the first time Gainesville is dedicating a month to the holiday, starting with the day Florida announced emancipation and culminating in the widely recognized day in June.
Celebrating Juneteenth
The Florida Legislature during its recently concluded session approved a state holiday to commemorate Florida’s Emancipation Day on May 20.
Local celebrations will be coordinated with the state holiday and will take place from May 20 through June 19.
“The city of Gainesville has decided to celebrate and really acknowledge the emancipation and liberation of Africans in America starting with Florida’s Emancipation Day on May 20 and going through June 19, so there are a series of events,” said Yvette Carter, chief inclusion officer at Gainesville Regional Utilities.
One of the organizers of the local events, Sherry Dupree, explained the significance of Juneteenth.