Local News

City of Raleigh holds first Juneteenth celebration in Dix Park

On Saturday afternoon, Raleigh will honor Juneteenth, now a federal holiday and the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the abolition of slavery in the U.S.

Posted Updated

By
Aaron Thomas & Adam Owens
, WRAL reporters
RALEIGH, N.C. — On Saturday afternoon, Raleigh honored Juneteenth, now a federal holiday and the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the abolition of slavery in the U.S.

This is the first time the city has held a Juneteenth celebration. Now that day is a federal holiday, some people are just learning about the history and what it means. But for many Black Americans, the holiday has been celebrated for a long time now.

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper and Raleigh Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin spoke at Dix Park during the Capital City Juneteenth Celebration. Hundreds of attendees braved the heat to hear addresses from officials on Harvey Hill.

"It’s a day to accept the joy of how far we have come and to accept the challenge of how far we still have to go for racial equality in this state and in this country," Cooper said.

"I want to accept the challenge here with you today to make sure that we have a North Carolina that works for everyone," Cooper said.

This media cannot be viewed right now.

Gov. Cooper declared June 19 as Juneteenth Day in North Carolina and Baldwin did the same for the city of Raleigh.

Stephen Edwards says it important people realize why this day exists. But he also said that people should not be "sidetracked" and "blinded" by government officials giving us

United Strings of Color, a group of black teenagers, played old hymns and songs of celebration on classical instruments like the violin and cello.

Young Black women read poems of resilience and anger over racial injustices in America, and their identity as Black people in America.

People at the event said that Juneteenth is not just Black history, its American history.

Jonathan Olu-Taylor, Djembe Drummer, opens Dix Park's Juneteenth event with a song of celebration. Photo taken June 19, 2021.

Rachel Costin, who lives in Raleigh, attended Saturday's event.

"Today is important just to have people be exposed to the culture," she said.

Meanwhile, down the street at the State Capitol in downtown Raleigh, an artist drew chalk sketches of freedmen and freedwomen with connections to the area. As visitors added to the chalk drawings, historic interpreters with the Capitol shared stories of the people being remembered.

Visitors were invited to color them in and learn their stories.

“A lot of the history I feel like, we have, as African Americans is very unknown," Artist Ayana Jarvis said. "Even to us. So, it is nice to get more recognition for our history and contributions to America.”

History of Juneteenth

"Juneteenth" is a combination of the two words June and nineteen, and is celebrated on June 19 each year.

The day is meant to commemorate the end of slavery for slaves in Texas, who weren't emancipated until two years after Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation.

Even though Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered two months before June 19 in Virginia, slavery was still alive and well in many states. The proclamation only applied to places under control by the Confederacy, and didn't apply to slave-holding border states or rebel areas already under Union control, according to the History Channel.

U.S. General Gordan Granger, with the Union, made his own proclamation in June of 1865. The announcement said that the Civil War was over, that the Union had won, and that slaves were now free.

"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," the order reads.

Once Black Americans learned of the news, there was celebration.

Traditionally, celebrations consisted of barbecues, music, prayer and church services. As Black Texans moved to other areas across the U.S., the tradition spread throughout the country.

Slavery did not end on Juneteenth. In some cases, slave owners withheld information about Black Americans freedom, and others refused to release their slaves until forced to.

After decades of activism, Congress has finally recognized Juneteenth as a federal holiday. Juneteenth is the first federal holiday to be recognized since Martin Luther King Jr. Day in 1983.

Opal Lee, a 94-year-old Black woman, has been integral in getting Congress to make Juneteenth a national holiday. Known as the "grandmother" of Juneteenth, Lee fought her entire life to bring awareness to the celebration of freedom.

 Credits 

Copyright 2024 by Capitol Broadcasting Company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.