Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Las Vegas Juneteenth celebration will be ‘bigger and better’ this year

Juneteenth Family Reunion & BBQ at Craig Ranch Regional Park

Christopher DeVargas

People gather at Craig Ranch Regional Park, Friday, June 19, 2020, for a family reunion and BBQ by the National Juneteenth Observance Foundation to commemorate June 19, 1865, the ending of slavery in the United States.

After the pandemic put a damper on last year’s Juneteenth festivities in Las Vegas, event organizers are gearing up for a big celebration to commemorate the end of slavery in the U.S.

“With the city opening back up to 100% capacity we are able to do it bigger and better,” said Curtis Coleman, director of Save Our Sons, a youth-mentoring nonprofit involved in the celebration. Clark County lifted most pandemic restrictions on June 1.

A representative from the office of U.S. Rep. Susie Lee, D-Nev., and Clark County Commissioner William McCurdy will speak at the Save Our Sons Juneteenth Festival, which runs from 2 to 7 p.m. June 19 at Lorenzi Park, 3343 W. Washington Ave.

More than 25 vendors will be at the festival, which is free and open to the public.

Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, the date slaves in Texas learned President Abraham Lincoln had signed the Emancipation Proclamation, effective Jan. 1, 1863. The document freed Confederate slaves and was enforced as Union troops advanced during the Civil War.

The 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1865, abolished slavery nationwide.

The National Juneteenth Observance Foundation has worked with local and state organizations for nearly 25 years to promote recognition of the holiday. The foundation was instrumental in passing bills in more than 40 states and Washington, D.C., to observe Juneteenth.

“I live Juneteenth every day, but this is the one day we decided will be the day to recognize and celebrate that freedom,” said Yvette Williams, founder and chairwoman of the Clark County Black Caucus, a nonpartisan volunteer organization focused on issues impacting the Black community.

Williams said there is “still a lot of oppression that we still see today” and “we still have work to do when it comes to that meaning of freedom.”

Williams will be displaying her Williams family Black history exhibit at the two-day Jazz Legacy and Heritage Juneteenth Festival in Henderson.

The festival opens at 5 p.m. June 11 at Water Street Plaza with a prayer, color guard presentation, flag raising and the Juneteenth anthem. African dancers perform at 6 p.m.

Williams is displaying her exhibit the second day of the festival on June 12 at the Whitney Ranch Recreation Center, 575 Galleria Drive.

The exhibit features artifacts dating to the 18th century from a village in Benin, West Africa, where Williams guided a church group tour. Williams also displays an authentic bill of sale for a slave in New Orleans.

Williams has presented the exhibit as part of history lessons at schools, community centers and educational events.

“It’s amazing because it’s not just non-Black people who don’t know the history. A lot of Black people don’t know the history. To watch them and see their eyes light up and get excited, it’s fulfilling to be able to open a new journey for them in wanting to learn more,” Williams said.

Guests at the Jazz Legacy and Heritage Juneteenth Festival can also participate in educational workshops about African American culture.

There are plenty of opportunities to learn about Black history and culture at Juneteenth events.

The Las Vegas-Clark County Library District and Vegas City Opera are honoring Harriet Tubman, an antislavery activist who used an underground network of secret routes and safe houses to help slaves escape to free states.

The event will feature storytelling and music from 3 to 4:45 p.m. June 19 at the Summerlin Library, 1771 Inner Circle Drive.

The Discovery Children’s Museum is celebrating Juneteenth with workshops and entertainment. Jodi Gutstein, director of marketing and communications, said the event is a way to reach people who might not know about the museum’s exhibits and programs. The children’s museum also made Juneteenth a paid holiday for its employees.

The museum, 360 Promenade Place, is having a flag raising ceremony and a poetry reading from Vogue Robinson from 10 to 10:30 a.m. on June 19. Robinson was Clark County poet laureate from 2017 to 2019.

A body percussion ensemble called Molodi is performing at 11 a.m. Resident artists Chase McCurdy and Lily Christofferson will offer workshops from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission to the museum is $12.50 for locals and $14.50 for out-of-state visitors. The first 250 children will get in free through a sponsorship by the NV Energy Foundation.

Gutstein said Juneteenth too often doesn’t get the attention it deserves, and “we want to put it in the forefront as an educational institution.”

The 20th Anniversary Las Vegas Juneteenth Festival hosted by Rainbow Dreams Educational Foundation and Las Vegas Councilman Cedric Crear will be from 6 to 9 p.m. June 19 at Kianga Isoke Palacio Park, 951 W. Lake Mead Blvd.

The event features live performances, vendors, workshops and community speakers. It is free and open to the public.

Commemorative Juneteenth T-shirts can be purchased online. Proceeds support the Rainbow Dreams Educational Foundation, a nonprofit group supporting youth in Southern Nevada’s underserved communities.

Other Juneteenth events include:

• The 10th Annual Juneteenth Jazz, Arts and Spoken Word Celebration at West Las Vegas Library will feature music, African dance and spoken word poetry from noon to 4:30 p.m. on June 18. The event is free and open to the public.

• The Las Vegas branch of the NAACP and the Urban Chamber of Las Vegas are having a Juneteenth Jubilee Breakfast from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on June 18 at Mont-Royal Ballroom at the Cosmopolitan. Tickets, which are available for $65 online at Eventbrite, must be purchased by June 15.

• The Juneteenth Black Family Reunion Carnival at Easy Days Mini Mart, 4972 South Maryland Parkway, features live music, games and performances from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. June 19. Tickets are available online through Eventbrite.

• Rhythm Nation LV, 3315 East Russell Road, will have an event featuring poets, lyricists, singers, rappers, spoken word performers and a cash bar. The doors open at 7 p.m. June 20. Guests must be 18 years or older. Tickets can be purchased online through Eventbrite.

CORRECTION: This story has been updated to reflect that a representative from the office of U.S. Rep. Susie Lee was scheduled to speak at the Save Our Sons Juneteenth Festival. | (June 11, 2021)