Students, staff and Raleigh community members gathered in Stafford Commons June 19 to honor the holiday Juneteenth.
Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865. The day is commonly known as the effective end of slavery in the U.S. – despite the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation being over two years earlier.
Although the Civil War came to an end in April of 1865, 250,000 enslaved people still remained in the Confederate community of Galveston, Texas. June 19 was the day Union troops arrived to proclaim the war was over, and the enslaved people were to be freed.
In 2021, President Joe Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, making 2023 the third year the U.S. has observed Juneteenth as a federal holiday. This was the second year NC State has hosted a celebration.
Director of Multicultural Student Affairs, Jameco McKenzie, and University Program Associate for University Housing, Quashon Bunch, helped facilitate this year’s event through their work on the Staff Senate’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee.
McKenzie spoke on why Juneteenth is important to honor and how students can navigate doing so.
“I believe that Juneteenth is important to celebrate because really, it’s about celebrating freedom,” McKenzie said. “It’s about celebrating life and community. We have this event to educate people about what Juneteenth is, and to provide space for people to celebrate it.”
Bunch hopes the event can inspire the University to be a place where students feel represented and connected.
“A lot of our students here think that they don’t have a place or they aren’t seen, I think this event allows them to be seen and meet others at a larger university in a way that we don’t get to see on this large campus,” Bunch said.
The event featured food trucks from Black-owned businesses, artistic performances and tabling from University entities such as the Africana Studies program, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary.
Additionally, on June 20, the College of Engineering’s Office for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion will host a “Juneteenth Lunch and Learn” event at Hunt Library for a documentary screening and an informative discussion.
McKenzie and Bunch encouraged Black and non-Black students alike to celebrate Juneteenth by utilizing the Juneteenth resources on the African American Cultural Center’s page to get educated on the history and meaning behind the holiday.
“You don’t have to be just Black to celebrate Juneteenth,” Bunch said. “The more people that are actually coming to Juneteenth and making it known and bringing awareness to the event, that’s a big impact in itself. Just being in community with those that celebrate Juneteenth, if they choose to, that’s a lot of support.”
McKenzie said the day doesn’t have to be a somber one.
“Oftentimes we talk about all the bad things that are happening, but really today is a time to talk about joy, to be happy and to get involved,” McKenzie said.
Resources for Black students on campus and information on upcoming events can be found on the African American Cultural Center’s website.