The Rhode Island General Assembly just made it official – Juneteenth is not only a Federal but also a RI State holiday!
Celebrate Juneteenth this weekend and Monday June 19. Celebrate its importance in our history, the freedoms hard-won by African-Americans, and that day in June 1865 when 250,000 of the last enslaved people finally were freed, in Texas six months after the 13th Amendment abolishing slavery had passed.
We share resources from the National Museum of African American History and Culture that our youth visited on their recent trip to Washington DC. Click for the museum’s Juneteenth Toolkit.
Click for a film of a 1925 Juneteenth Parade in Beaumount Texas, by Rev. Solomon Sir Jones, part of an archive of his films held at the Yale Beinecke Library.
Enjoy!
Happy Juneteenth!
From the staff of Rhode Island for Community & Justice
Toby Ayers, PhD, Executive Director
Rose Albert, MA, Director of Youth Programs
Sharlene Tavares, Youth Programs Coordinator I
Luca O’Donnell, Youth Programs Coordinator II
Sarah Ortes, Mentor Program Coordinator
Jace Cardona, Juvenile Justice Coordinator VISTA
Emma Martin, Juvenile Justice Coordinator
Vero Godina, Brown University Bonner Fellow
Angel Morataya, Brown University IProv Intern
Tyshon Hattori-Lindsey, Brown University IProv Intern