Juneteenth is the oldest celebration commemorating the ending of slavery in the United States. It was on June 19th, 1865 (two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation was in effect) that the Union soldiers landed at Galveston, Texas with news that the war had ended and that the enslaved were now free.

6/17/2023
2023 JUNETEENTH FESTIVAL – Johnson House Historic Site  12pm – 7pm (No Rain Date)
Enjoy a day-long outdoor street festival in Germantown filled with re-enactments, music, history, culture, food, meaningful conversation, fun and more.

6/18/23 West Phila Juneteenth Philly celebrations:

Parade                 12p – 2p               52^nd Street (will be televised)

Marketplace       10a – 8p               Malcolm X Park 52^nd and Cedar

Music Festival    3p – 7p                 52^nd and Larchwood

6/18/23 
Beyond Juneteenth Ancestors Festival: Afrosympoesium & Expo – Delaware Art Museum (delart.org) 11 – 4pm
The 4th Annual Beyond Juneteenth has moved beyond symbolism and celebrates the ancestral traditions of the enslaved and the accomplishments of their descendants. This years’ Festival is an AfrisymPOEMsium and Expo focused on the education, healing, protection, and adaptation of the human spirit. Come One, Come All!

Read the Philadelphia Inquirer article about the contributions made by USG members Susan Bockius and Barbara Dowdall to the exhibit and the carpentry work Howard Sliver provided.

GHS is at 5501 Germantown Ave. The free exhibition runs through December 31. Email Barbara Dowdall at endingracism@usguu.org for more information. For more background on the book and its characters, please CLICK HERE.

Background info about Juneteenth

https://www.vox.com/2020/6/18/21294825/history-of-juneteenth (from 2020)

https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/11/us/what-is-juneteenth-trnd/index.html (from 2020)

Six Black Museums joined forces to commemorate the 155th anniversary of Juneteenth in 2022.

https://www.blkfreedom.org/