Modesto celebrates Juneteenth with music, faith, families. More events set for holiday
Sunny skies and clear voices greeted the celebration of Juneteenth in Modesto on Saturday.
The day, which annually celebrates the end of slavery, included a festival at Graceada Park with music, prayer, food and vendors. The weekend event preceded the national holiday, which is observed Monday.
Modesto resident Patricia Woods sang with members of her church, Victory in Praise, for the event. Other speakers and performers also took to the Mancini Bowl stage to talk about the holiday and celebrate families and faith.
“I love the food, I love the camaraderie, I love the music,” Woods said of the celebration.
Juneteenth recognizes the day in 1865 when the last enslaved African-Americans learned of their freedom after the end of the Civil War. Union soldiers brought the news to the west Texas Galveston Bay community two years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. The day commemorates when the approximately 250,000 Black slaves in Texas were finally freed, according to the Smithsonian Institution.
In 2021, President Joe Biden signed legislation establishing June 19 as a federal holiday.
“To be recognized for the things we’ve been through by the federal government feels good,” Stockton resident Michael West said of the national holiday. He came with his family to the Modesto event.
Juneteenth celebrations will continue around the region Monday. They include:
- Riverbank: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., downtown Riverbank Plaza, free. Program includes live music, food, children’s activities, vendors and a Black business expo. Event presented by Sullie Entertainment.
- Modesto: Walk-a-thon 7 a.m. meet, 8 a.m. walk, corner of Martin Luther King Drive and California Avenue, free. Prayer breakfast 10 a.m., Modesto Center Plaza, Stanislaus Room, free. Youth symposium 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Modesto Centre Plaza, Stanislaus Room, $10 registration. Youth dance 5 to 9 p.m., Modesto Centre Plaza, Stanislaus Room, $10 admission. Adult dance 9:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m., Modesto Centre Plaza, Stanislaus Room, $20 admission. Event organized by The Silver Square Lodge #66 and the Knights of Pythagorean Samo Council #1. More information, call 209-595-6966.
This story was originally published June 17, 2023 at 3:33 PM.
