BOSTON (WHDH) - Gov. Maura Healey celebrated Juneteenth at the Massachusetts State House Monday, raising the official Juneteenth flag as part of celebrations for the holiday.
Other events happened throughout the region as communities observed Juneteenth this year.
“It is America’s history, therefore we must know it, we must teach it, we must honor it, embrace it and never erase it,” Healey said.
Juneteenth is the newest federal holiday. It marks the end of slavery, when a US general informed troops in Galveston, Texas that the Civil War was over and enslaved people should be freed. The people freed in Galveston were among the last enslaved people to be freed two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation took effect.
Events on Monday spanned from the Hyde Community Center in Newton to Arlington, where people gathered to eat food, hear from speakers and hear music.
“It’s a day of reflection, celebration of freedom and acknowledgement of the perseverance of Black people in the United States,” said Arlington Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Director Jill Harvey.
Some in Arlington also witnessed the unveiling of a new monument on Monday in a historic cemetery where enslaved and free people of color were buried in a segregated area back in the 1700s. The new engraved piece of granite honors their memories.
“It was an unmarked section of the graveyard and we felt that a monument honoring the persons buried here was long overdue,” said Richard Duffy of the Arlington Historical Society.
In Boston, people marched in a parade from Nubian Square to a historic 1871 mansion in Roxbury which now houses the National Center for Afro-American Artists on Walnut Street.
“A lot of love went into this thing — no money, we don’t even get money,” said Boston Juneteenth Committee Chair Jumaada A-K.H. Smith. “We don’t have time to try to write for a grant.”
Juneteenth is not only a celebration of emancipation and freedom. It is also a celebration of Black culture and the arts.
On Monday, the weather for the Juneteenth parade in Boston was perfect, with temperatures not too warm and not too cold.
“This is great,” said parade marcher Janey Porter-Nichols. “It means a lot to us. It’s bringing back history and we’re learning about history.”
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu said history should be a guide as society seeks new paths toward diversity, equity and inclusion.
“It is on our shoulders now to do our part, not only to look forward, but also to look back and understand how we should move forward,” Wu said.
Juneteenth became a federal holiday in 2021.
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