Juneteenth: Explaining the Unsung Holiday (Menu and Playlist Included)

“Juneteenth” is a portmanteau of June and nineteen and a parlance of Black American structure. The moniker hails the date June 19, 1865—the day that enslaved Black people in Texas got the news that slavery was abolished.

Here’s the rub: Enslaved men and women in America were legally freed on the enactment of the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863. For two and a half years, in an unabashed effort to continue the status quo— having unpaid labor to run their cotton fields and plantation homes—slave owners kept the information away from their so-called slaves. In short, Texas went rogue.

How did the government get the largest state to abide by the rules? They sent artillery and a general who wasn’t one for losing battles. When Major General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, with soldiers in tow, he issued three announcements, called General Orders. In summary:

General Orders, No.3: the most pertinent to Juneteenth, stated that “all slaves are free.”
General Orders, No.4: All civil and military officers connected to the “so-called Confederate State” must report for parole and consider all of their acts and laws illegitimate.
General Order, No. 5: All the cotton cultivated by free labor was to be shipped to New York or New Orleans by plantation owners.

Freed Black men and women now had the opportunity to choose: Stay with former slave owners, now obligated to pay wages as employer to employee. Go in search of family members sold into enslavement and try to establish a unit. Embark on this new journey called freedom, come what may. Whatever their choice, every June 19, we celebrate their freedom to choose.

Ironically, Texas was the first to make Juneteenth a state holiday in 1980. And in June 2021, Juneteenth officially became a federal holiday. Celebrations today range from festivals to old-school cookouts with family and friends. Similar to the first held in 1866, it can essentially be a party with a menu of traditional soul food fare: Collard greens, smothered chicken, black-eyed peas, barbecue and strawberry soda.

Sophia Strother has organized the Juneteenth celebration in Waco, Texas, for the past several years. Born and raised in Springfield, Massachusetts, she explained, “Never once had I ever heard of Juneteenth until I moved to Texas, and it was a holiday on the calendar. I never knew what it meant. I saw that African-Americans got together and were barbecuing and having a good time, still not knowing what it was.” In 2011, she did her own research. As a Community Impact Leader for the state of Texas, she felt that Juneteenth was bigger than a barbecue— it was a celebration of hope and cultural pride.

The first year, the event was held at Heritage Square in Waco, in the location of its last public lynching. “I purposely did it that way,” Strother said. “I wanted the first year to be significant. The irony of it; so many years later, to celebrate in the same place we were shamed.”

That year, 4500 people attended, and it has grown each year. “Now, the city gives us Brazos Park due to the growth. We have celebrities performing from hip-hop to R&B to Jazz and Gospel. We want to make it attractive to all age groups, get them engaged and use the opportunity to get younger generations to understand the meaning behind Juneteenth.”

The Juneteenth NY Festival takes place in Gershwin Park/Lincoln Park in Brooklyn, New York. Athenia Rodney, a community event organizer, has designed past festivals around a theme. “Our sponsors recognize that we host 4,000 people each year who speak to their demographic. The 2026 theme is “Rooted in Strength,” offering the musical performers, showcases and vendors. Rodney imparted, “This is about taking what Juneteenth stands for, recognizing our worth, and now that we have you engaged, let’s educate you about something.”

Beverly Sanders was in her thirties, too, when she organized the first Juneteenth in Valdosta, Georgia, in 1993. She, too, had never heard of it growing up. “At the time, I was a manager at McMullen Southside Library; we barely had any books, lots of bare shelves. In 1992, we organized the Southside Library Boosters to raise money for the Black neighborhood’s library. One of the boosters, from Texas, talked to us about Juneteenth. We decided to do a fundraiser around the day and try to raise money to buy books.” The three- to four-day program educating people about June 19 has become South Georgia’s longest-running Juneteenth celebration. “We raised $30,000 for the library.” Sanders once feared interest in the celebration waning in the community. “Everyone can be involved, said, “However, it’s important for young people to understand its significance and bring fresh, new ideas to the table,” in 2026, it enters its 34th year.

In Athens, Texas, Juneteenth is celebrated with a rodeo featuring black cowboys; in Galveston, Texas, there is an annual parade; in Richmond, California, there is a big multicultural dance party.

Juneteenth celebrations can range from five people at a house to 50 people at a family reunion to 50,000 people at the park, as Twin Cities Juneteenth in Minneapolis has done. Honoring the day is an exercise in Black love and an offering to the ancestors.