Juneteenth has been celebrated for over a century, but it only became a federal holiday a few years ago. It is typically celebrated on June 19.
San Luis Obispo County NAACP President Barry Stokes explained the holiday dates back to June 19, 1865, about two years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863.
"The emancipation had already occurred two years prior," Stokes said. "It wasn't until the federal soldiers came in and announced to Galveston, Texas, that slavery has ended."
The local NAACP branch is holding its celebration at Mission Plaza. This year's theme is "Celebrating Freedom – Rooted in Legacy, Rising in Power."
San Luis Obispo County NAACP Educational Committee Chair Sylvia Henson said it's important now more than ever to celebrate.
"As the NAACP president said, freedom is not free, so we need to keep focused on that, and we're going to rise in power. We've seen times like this before," Henson said.
“There's a legacy of bigotry that justified slavery, that I think we all continue to live with," said Irv Hepner, NAACP Legal Redress Committee Chair. "One of the ways to deal with that is to celebrate black history as part of American history. It's not something separate. It's an integral part of who we were and who we are.”
Before Saturday's celebration, a presentation about Quakers and their involvement with slavery by the 339 Manumissions and Beyond Project was held at the SLO History Center. The project tracks over 300 individuals who were enslaved and then freed by Quakers in early America.
For more information about the celebration, click here.
