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Celebrate Juneteenth 2026

Monday, June 01, 2026

Lowell Perry

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Friday, June 19, 2026 we celebrate the Juneteenth holiday.  It is widely considered the longest running African American holiday and is hailed by some as America’s “second Independence Day.”  At a time when the shameful attempt at whitewashing the history of this country ascribed to underrepresented groups as protagonists is on overdrive, I am compelled to again offer up a brief history lesson in honor of Juneteenth.  It is also hearty rebuke of the disturbing actions being perpetrated by some so-called leaders who are not even hiding their dastardly desire for a return to the “great” days of Jim Crow. Please make a conscious effort to follow the links herein the missive.  You will most certainly be enlightened about a great many things.  

Wikipedia describes Juneteenth as “a federal holiday in the United States. It is celebrated annually on June 19 to commemorate the ending of slavery in the United States. The holiday’s name, first used in the 1890s, is a portmanteau of the words “June” and “nineteenth”, referring to June 19, 1865, the day when Major General Gordon Granger ordered the final enforcement of the Emancipation Proclamation in Texas at the end of the American Civil War.[8][9] In the Civil War period, slavery came to an end in various areas of the United States at different times.  

Many enslaved Southerners escaped, demanded wages, stopped work, or took up arms against the Confederacy of slave states. In January 1865, Congress finally proposed the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution for national abolition of slavery. By June 1865, almost all enslaved were freed by the victorious Union Army, or abolition laws in some of the remaining U.S. states. When the national abolition amendment was ratified in December, the remaining enslaved in Delaware and in Kentucky were freed. 

 

Early celebrations date back to 1866, at first involving church-centered community gatherings in Texas. They spread across the South among newly freed African American slaves and their descendants and became more commercialized in the 1920s and 1930s, often centering on a food festival. Participants in the Great Migration brought these celebrations to the rest of the country. During the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, these celebrations were eclipsed by the nonviolent determination to achieve civil rights but grew in popularity again in the 1970s with a focus on African American freedom and African American arts. Beginning with Texas by proclamation in 1938, and by legislation in 1979, every U.S. state and the District of Columbia has formally recognized the holiday in some way. 

 

Juneteenth is also celebrated by the Mascogos, descendants of Black Seminoles who escaped from slavery in 1852 and settled in Coahuila, Mexico.[10] 

The day was recognized as a federal holiday in 2021, when the 117th U.S. Congress enacted and President Joe Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law. Juneteenth became the first new federal holiday since Martin Luther King Jr. Day was adopted in 1983.[11] “ 

 

The Greater Cleveland area hosts numerous Juneteenth events throughout June, culminating around the federal holiday on June 19. Major celebrations include family picnics, community block parties, live music, and cultural festivals spanning from downtown Cleveland to surrounding suburbs like Richmond Heights, Solon, and Pepper Pike. [1, 2, 3, 4]. If you really want to find out what this important holiday is all about, you owe it to yourselves, and especially your kids and grandkids to lean into the celebration. Trust me.  They won’t feel bad, as some of the idiots who want to eliminate books like the iconic novel Roots: The Saga of an American Family, by Alex Haley that actually fostered a healthy discussion about race, from bookshelves everywhere.   

 

There is no scientific basis for race by the way.  It is a social construct put in place by diabolical characters specifically to divide us.    

 

 

Following are some suggestions: 

 

Key Schedule Highlights 

(Note: Be sure to check with organizers as dates and times are subject to change) 

Early & Mid-June 

  • June 13: The 5th Annual Juneteenth Celebration takes place at Greenwood Farm Community Park (Richmond Heights) from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM. It features an art exhibition, games, food, and music. 

  • June 16: Stafford Park in Maple Heights hosts a Party in the Park Party in the Park celebration at 6:30 PM. [1, 2, 3] 

 

Main Commemorations (June 19) 

  • The Sixty6: Attend a daytime cultural gathering at Juneteenth at The Sixty6 (East 66th St) from 1:00 PM to 10:00 PM for quilt storytelling, African drumming, and line dancing. 

 

Later Juneteenth Weekend Events 

 

For updates and a full citywide breakdown, visit the Cleveland Juneteenth Events Directory or check city-specific platforms like Signal Cleveland. [1] 

 

Also, the Urban League of Greater Cleveland and the Akron Urban League both typically host Juneteenth events in Northeast Ohio. Follow their respective links to learn more.   

 

If you prefer movie or television exploration, Ebony suggests 7 Must-Watch Juneteenth Dramas and Documentaries to Celebrate Freedom https://bit.ly/3ZCclPG. 

 

Remember my friends, Black History is American History! 

Cheers,  

LP