Juneteenth, a national holiday marking the end of slavery in the United States, is coming up on Monday, June 19. News4’s Tommy McFly previews the celebrations in the D.C. area.
Juneteenth, a national holiday marking the end of slavery in the United States, is on Monday, June 19.
The holiday commemorates June 19, 1865, when news of liberation reached 250,000 enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, the Smithsonian Museum says. That was two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was issued in 1863.
Today, Juneteenth National Independence Day — the combination of “June” and “nineteen” — is a federal holiday that's celebrated throughout the D.C. area and beyond. Juneteenth has been called a second independence day, Emancipation Day, Jubilee Day and Black Independence Day.
Juneteenth is the newest federal holiday, first recognized in 2021. But, it's been celebrated for generations by Black Americans, Brandon Byrd, Associate Professor of History at Vanderbilt University, told NBCLX.
We've got the news you need to know to start your day. Sign up for the First & 4Most morning newsletter — delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up here.
DJ QuickSilva of 93.9 WKYS says it's important to celebrate Juneteenth now that it's a day off work.
"We know the history of Juneteenth and what it means to us. You have to live life and enjoy life," QuickSilva said. "If you're able to make a large celebration, good. But if not, just have something in your own backyard, in your own house, enjoy your family and celebrate Juneteenth."
If you're looking for ways to get out and celebrate in D.C., Maryland and Virginia, check these out:
The Scene
The most fun things to do and places to be in D.C., Maryland and Virginia
Juneteenth celebrations in Washington, D.C.
Exhibits
Emancipation Proclamation and General Order No. 3 display
📅 June 17-19
📍 National Archives
💲 Free
🔗 Details
See the original documents at the root of the Juneteenth holiday with your own eyes in a special National Archives exhibit. Reserve a timed ticket to save yourself time in line.
The National Archives Museum will open for extended hours, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., on Saturday, Sunday and Monday in honor of the holiday.
Don’t miss the Juneteenth Family Day on Sat. from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. It’s free and a great place to take kids for hands-on activities.
Frank Stewart’s Nexus: An American Photographer’s Journey
📅 Through Sept. 3
📍 The Phillips Collection
💲 Included with general admission ($16 for adults)
🔗 Details
Photographer Frank Stewart portrayed world cultures and Black life in many forms, the Phillips Collection says, and this exhibit of more than 100 black and white photos shows trips to Africa and Cuba, as well as images of jazz legends including Miles Davis.
Don’t miss the companion exhibit it inspired: Focal Point, a display of D.C. students’ photography work that debuts June 16.
Afrofuturism: A History of Black Futures
📅 Through March 24, 2023
📍 NMAAHC
💲 Free; timed tickets required
🔗 Details
The exhibit uses hundreds of pop-culture objects "from music, film, television, comic books, fashion, theater, literature and more" to demonstrate the concept of Afrofuturism and share the cultural movement with visitors. NBC Washington took a look when it opened in March.
Explore the museum more with two talks on Saturday, June 17 (at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.): History Alive!: USCT: Juneteenth: What it Means, and Why We Celebrate.
I Dream a World: Selections from Brian Lanker’s Portraits of Remarkable Black Women
📅 Through Sept. 10
📍 National Portrait Gallery
💲 Free
🔗 Details
Events
The Black Tech Collective Juneteenth Networking Link
📅 Tuesday, June 13
📍 The Owl Room (2007 14th St NW, Washington, D.C.)
💲 Free admission
🔗 Details
The Black Tech Collective hosts this fundraiser for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Washington’s STEM club. It’s free to enter, but you can pay $25 to enter a raffle for prizes including tickets to the Broccoli City Festival or the Kennedy Center’s Marvin Gaye tribute show.
One Life: Frederick Douglass
📅 June 16 through April 21, 2024
📍 The National Portrait Gallery
💲 Free
🔗 Details
The National Portrait Gallery’s Frederick Douglass exhibit, featuring prints, photographs and ephemera, opens just in time for Juneteenth weekend.
Guest curators and Harvard University professor John Stauffer will host a talk about the exhibit on Friday, June 16 at 3 p.m.
What’s Going On NOW: A Tribute to Marvin Gaye
📅 June 16-17
📍 The Kennedy Center
💲 $39-$99
🔗 Details
In honor of Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Goin On” turning 50, Michelle Williams, Joshua Henry, Cory Henry and more artists are performing the D.C. native’s biggest hits alongside young local poets and writers.
For a free option, check out the Millennium Stage. Youth poets and writers from 826DC, Shout Mouse Press, and Words, Beats & Life will do performances on Wednesday through Saturday in June. Reserve free tickets here.
Home Rule Music Festival
📅 June 16-17, 24
🔗 Details
Black-owned record shop HR Records, plus its music advocacy organization, and CapitalBop are hosting a festival to celebrate D.C. music and culture with a lineup of world-class jazz shows.
The main event is a free day of music at the Parks at Walter Reed, complete with a record fair, food trucks and family-friendly fun. Feel free to bring a chair and a picnic. ANXO will be selling craft drinks and cider; no outside alcohol is allowed.
Mark G. Meadows and The Movement, Brian Jackson, EU, The Experience Band and Show are included on the lineup.
Songbyrd will host a free after-party.
If you’re after more jazz, Grammy nominee Kassa Overall will kick off the festival on Friday with a ticketed show at Songbyrd ($20 in advance, $25 at the door). Hear in Now headline the closing show at the Black Cat on Sat., June 24 ($20 in advance, $25 at the door).
Juneteenth Family Day
📅 Sat., June 17, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
📍 National Museum of African American History and Culture
💲 Free
🔗 Details
No tickets are required for the outdoor events, which include an architectural and garden tours, seed art, a drum circle and African folktales.
Grab tickets to get in on the action inside, including a “Sounds of Juneteenth” performance, plus fan and jewelry making.
The R&B Bar Crawl
📅 Sat., June 17, 2-10 p.m.
📍 U Street
💲 $10-$20
🔗 Details
Juneteenth for the City
📅 Sat., June 17, 1-5 p.m.
📍 The Michelle Obama Southeast Center of Bread for the City (1700 Good Hope Rd SE)
💲 Free entry
🔗 Details
A performance by D.C.’s Chocolate Soul, family-friendly activities and a Black-owned vendor fair are just some of the ways to enjoy this history-focused event hosted by Bread for the City and Mema’s Popups.
Celebrate Juneteenth
📅 Sun., June 18, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
📍 Brookland Arts Walk (next to the Brookland Metro station)
🔗 Details
Shop the Black-owned marketplace, hear talks on Black maternal care and the Djembe drum and enjoy Coyaba Dance Theater and DJ M$NP at the performance stage.
The family-friendly event has canvas painting and a history lesson on the Juneteenth flag for kids aged 6 and up.
Use the John F Mccormack Rd NE & Michigan Ave NE entrance at the Brookland Metro station; there’s also free neighborhood parking on Sundays.
FITDC’s Juneteenth in the District Health and Wellness Fair
📅 Mon., June 19, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
📍 Franklin Park (1332 I Street NW)
💲 Free
🔗 Details
Put on your workout gear for free fitness classes: yoga at 9 a.m. and dance cardio at 11 a.m. The wellness festival will offer mini massages, aura photography, nutrition and meditation sessions, astrology classes and food trucks. The first 500 residents to register will get a free T-shirt.
Planet Word’s Black Author Book Festival
📅 Mon., June 19, noon
📍 Planet Word Museum (Northwest D.C.)
💲 Free admission
🔗 Details
Nine DMV authors will host conversation and book signings while DJ Qué Pequeño mixes tunes and Mixt stores craft cocktails.
Juneteenth celebrations in Maryland
The Scotland Juneteenth Heritage Festival
📅 Events Fri. to Mon.
📍 Montgomery County, plus a concert at The Anthem in D.C.
💲 Various
🔗 Details
All are invited to learn the history, celebrate the community and respect the journey at The Scotland Juneteenth Heritage Festival spanning several locations. The Scotland A.M.E. Zion Church community is leading a coalition of historic Black churches and the larger community to create the multiday festival.
Here’s the full schedule — it has something for everyone, including:
- 🎶 Motown and oldies at Bethesda Blues and Jazz on Saturday ($60-$100).
- 🙏 Interfaith worship and a Day of Community Service on Sunday.
- 🐐 A children’s carnival with rides, music, face painting, a petting zoo and more family fun will take over Cabin John Regional Park on Monday.
- 🚗 A classic car show, health and wellness and history pavilions and a talent show on Monday at Cabin John Village (11325 Seven Locks Road, Potomac).
- 🎤 Wyclef Jean, Tarrus Riley, Patrice Roberts, Ricardo Drue and Gyptian perform at the Scotland Freedom Day Concert on Monday ($65-$153). Note that the event was moved to The Anthem.
City of Bowie Juneteenth Celebration
📅 Events Fri. to Sun.
📍 Allen Pond Park (3330 Northview Drive, Bowie, Maryland)
💲 Free
🔗 Details
Join your neighbors in Bowie for celebration, history and community on Juneteenth weekend. Events include:
- KanKouran West African Dance Class and “42: The Jackie Robinson Story” screening on Friday
- Juneteenth Family Reunion with inflatable rides, dance, a petting zoo and more on Saturday (11 a.m. to 4 p.m.)
- Fathers & Families Juneteenth Celebration Bike Ride and Juneteenth Concert on Sunday
Juneteenth Festival
📅 Sat., June 17, noon to 5 p.m.
📍 Watkins Regional Park in Upper Marlboro
💲 Free
🔗 Details
Prince George’s County’s big Juneteenth Festival includes performances by Rare Essence, Avery Sunshine, an Earth, Wind and Fire tribute band and more. You’ll find local merchandise and food vendors, plus artist Bevadine Zoma Terrell’s exhibit “My Coloured Girls.”
Kids will love giant bubble wands, face painting and hands-on art activities including making a mini airbrush print and group mural making.
A virtual Black genealogy summit will happen over Zoom in conjunction with the festival. If you’re interested, register here by June 15.
Freedom Fest: A Celebration of Juneteenth
📅 Sat., June 17, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
📍 Marian Fryer Town Plaza in Wheaton, Maryland
💲 Free
🔗 Details
Craft vendors, music, local organizations and family activities are on tap. Attendees can bring baby items and canned food items to donate.
Juneteenth: Journey to Freedom
📅 Sat., June 17, noon to 10 p.m.
📍 BlackRock Center for the Arts (12901 Town Commons Drive, Germantown, Maryland)
💲 Free
🔗 Details
Montgomery County’s Juneteenth celebration has something for everyone, including a headlining performance by Southeast D.C. native Sa-Roc. Educational activities and free indoor Hollywood blockbuster screenings are also planned.
Juneteenth Black Business Expo
📅 Sun., June 18, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
📍 Veterans Plaza Silver Spring
💲 Free entry
🔗 Details
Shop from more than 60 Black-owned businesses while enjoying lie entertainment, games, food and drinks and more.
Celebrate Juneteenth
📅 Mon., June 19
📍 National Harbor
💲 Free entry
🔗 Details
Browse a Black-owned marketplace from 1-7 p.m., and stick around for performances on the Plaza Stage from 5-7 p.m. Autumn Joi Live will serve as host readings from Prince George’s County Poet Laureate Khadijah Ali-Coleman and Youth Poet Laureate Precious Foreman, plus music from DuPont Brass and Prince George’s Cultural Arts Foundation’s African Drumming and Percussions Master Class.
Don’t miss MahoganyBooks’ celebration and storytime the Saturday before, either.
Juneteenth Service Projects
📅 Mon., June 19, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
📍 Soulfull Cafe in Rockville
💲 Free
🔗 Details
Juneteenth Poetry Slam Cookout
📅 Sat., June 24
📍 Horace and Dickies Seafood of Waldorf (12536 Mattawoman Drive, Waldorf, Maryland)
💲 Free admission
🔗 Details
You’re invited to perform your favorite poem, spoken word o rap to celebrate Juneteenth at Horace and Dickies Seafood in Waldorf. It’s for people aged 21 and up only.
Juneteenth celebrations in Virginia
"Passing Strange"
📅 Through June 18
📍 Signature Theatre in Arlington, Virginia
💲 $56-$89
🔗 Details
It’s your last chance to see the revival of the Tony Award-winning rock musical that inspired a Spike Lee film adaptation at Signature Theatre.
Bull Run Church and Harris Cemetery Juneteenth Celebration
📅 Sat., June 17, 10:30 a.m. to noon
📍 Bull Run Regional Park (7700 Bull Run Drive Centreville, Virginia)
💲 Free
🔗 Details
Co-sponsored by NOVA Parks and the Fairfax County NAACP, this Juneteenth event will tell the story of Robert Carter Ill's emancipation of 500 enslaved people in Northern Virginia, plus present a Black Expo and children’s activity.
Attendees are asked to meet at The Atlantis Water Park parking lot and donate a gently used reading book aimed at toddlers and early readers.
Gum Springs Community Day/Juneteenth
📅 Sat., June 17
📍 Martin Luther King Jr. Recreational Park (8115 Fordson Road, Alexandria, Virginia)
💲 Free
🔗 Details
Fairfax County’s oldest African American community is turning 190 years old. After unveiling a new highway marker, Gum Springs is set to celebrate with a parade in Martin Luther King Jr. Community Park, followed by a festival with carnival rides, food, music, an auction, a health fair and more. Visit the civic association’s website for more details.
Juneteenth Celebration at Frying Pan Farm Park
📅 Sat., June 17
📍 Frying Pan Farm Park in Herndon, Virginia
💲 Free
🔗 Details
Make sure to register online for one of three sessions.
Juneteenth Celebration 2023
📅 Sat., June 17, noon to 6 p.m.
📍 Ida Lee Park in Leesburg, Virginia
💲 $20 at the door
Check the event’s Facebook page for updates.
Carlyle House Historic Park Annual Juneteenth Celebration
📅 Sat., noon to 4 p.m.
📍 Carlyle House (121 N Fairfax St., Alexandria, Virginia)
💲 Free
🔗 Details
Visitors can see the work of visual artist Michael Spears and poets Micah the Poet, Carlynn Newhouse, Mysfit and Pi-Anir the Poet before talking to the artists, plus join hands-on activities.
For a deeper look at the historic property, check out Friday’s tour focused on the enslaved people who worked there ($10, limited spots).
Underground Railroad Quilt Codes
📅 Sun., June 18, 1 p.m.
📍 Green Spring Gardens Park in Lincolnia, Virginia
💲 $15
Local quilter Sharon Tindall explains the intersection of quilts and the Underground Railroad in history. Register here; spots are limited.
Want to know what's up for your weekend? Sign up for The Weekend Scene, our newsletter about events, experiences and adventures for you and for your family around the DMV.
