AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Thursday marks the fourth year of recognizing Juneteenth as a federal holiday, and the community is already joining hands to celebrate the day of freedom.
The holiday marks the day in 1865 enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, found out they had been freed — after the end of the Civil War, and two years after President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation.
Since it was designated a federal holiday in 2021, Juneteenth has become more universally recognized beyond Black America. Many people get the day off work or school, and there are a plethora of street festivals, fairs, concerts and other events.
On Tuesday, gloves and bags were put to use as people took to the streets for a Juneteenth Community Cleanup event.
Volunteers helped clean up Golden Camp Road near Hillcrest Baptist Church from 8:30 a.m. to 11 a.m.
Your First Alert Meteorologist Mikel Hannah-Harding participated too.
UPCOMING EVENTS:
- The Band of Brothers will host its Juneteenth Augusta festival on Thursday. It’ll be at the Augusta exchange fairgrounds from 12 p.m. to 9 p.m.
- On Saturday, the Center of African American History, Art and Culture will host a celebration at Founder’s Park in Aiken from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Over the decades, Juneteenth has also been called Freedom Day, Emancipation Day, Black Fourth of July and second Independence Day among others.
We will continue to update this story throughout the day on WRDW.com
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