Todays marks an important day of national remembrance, as people in our region and around the country attend events to honor Juneteenth.

Juneteenth (short for June 19th) commemorates the end of slavery in the United States, and in June 2021 was officially designated a national holiday by President Joe Biden.

It is named for the day in 1865 that Union troops finally arrived in Galveston Bay, Texas, and announced that all enslaved people in the state were now free by executive decree, over two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation was issued.

There will be Juneteenth celebrations and events throughout Philadelphia and Delaware this week and into this weekend! Check out the top two links in our bio from our DEI Committee showcasing events in the respective regions, and we hope you have a meaningful remembrance and celebration.

[image shows a street in West Philadelphia lined with booths and filled with pedestrians, photo courtesy of Johnson House Historic Site]