Juneteenth has been celebrated by Black communities since June 19, 1865, when Union troops arrived in Galveston Bay, Texas, to enforce the Emancipation Proclamation and free the remaining enslaved African Americans there. Commemorating the end of slavery in the country, it has been recognized as a US federal holiday since 2021, encouraging more Americans to celebrate it as the country’s second independence day.

One of the effects of the increased national attention on the holiday has been an explosion of museum programming to commemorate it. Some museums, particularly those with a focus on African American history and culture, have long celebrated the occasion, but the breadth and ambition of programming have grown to impressive heights in recent years, encompassing entertainment, education, and community engagement. Here is just a small selection of some of the programs museums have in store to celebrate Juneteenth as a federal holiday.

Inspiration for how you or your museum might get involved:

Get inspiration from other museums celebrating Juneteenth:

• The Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture hosts a Juneteenth Community Day themed “Freedom, Movement, and Migration” with activities like story times, flag designing, presentations, a special cafe menu, book signing, and a concert, engaging people of all ages in celebrating Juneteenth’s significance in American history.
• The Reading Public Museum offers special activities and programs in honor of Juneteenth, including an educational lecture, family day, and special admissions. The museum also hosts special documentary screenings as a continuation of the festivities.
• The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute throws a day-long celebration consisting of live performances, guided tours of the city’s Civil Right’s District, children’s activities, and more—the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute will host live genealogy workshops to help African Americans trace their family histories. In collaboration with community partners, including the Birmingham African American Genealogy Group, the museum will offer both beginner- and advanced-level workshops to help participants start or advance their research and overcome common roadblocks that may arise.
• Weeksville Heritage Center, in collaboration with Black-Owned Brooklyn, a publication that helps readers discover local Black-owned businesses, holds a two-day Juneteenth Food Festival on its grounds, featuring twenty Black vendors offering cuisine from across the African diaspora. In addition to food, the event features “a marketplace of Black-owned cultural goods, educational activities and performances, as well as sets from a lineup of all-Black queer and trans DJs.”
• The Atlanta History Center ties its Juneteenth event into its celebration of Black culinary history and America’s pastime, baseball. Themed “A Celebration of Togetherness Through Food and Family,” the event features on-campus activities, cooking demonstrations, museum theater, and exhibitions, including More Than Brave: The Life of Henry Aaron and Barbecue Nation, highlighting Juneteenth’s legacy and underscoring the joyous union of family, food, and community.
• The DuSable Museum of African American History offers a Juneteenth yoga and sound bowl experience in partnership with Prison Yoga Chicago, a nonprofit organization that provides trauma-informed yoga as a rehabilitative tool and a form of social activism for individuals impacted by the criminal legal system, offering a unique and reflective way to honor the day.
• The Greensboro History Museum hosts a guided Juneteenth bike tour called “Green Book Along the Greenway,” taking cyclists of all ages on a three-mile exploration of sites featured in The Negro Motorist Green Book, which provided African American travelers with a guide to safe spaces across the U.S., including more than a dozen sites in Greensboro. Participants can hop on a bike to explore historic locations and currently operating Green Book sites in the Gate City, including the Historic Magnolia House.
• The Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit holds in-person and online events on the themes of education, economic independence, and community engagement. These include a morning stretch session, performances by a cultural dance theatre, and information tables from community partners “focused on building and extending freedom and equality within the Black community”. The museum also hosts a free concert showcasing the diversity of Black music, including spirituals, hip hop, and folk.
• The Please Touch Museum provides a range of programming celebrating the Black experience for its children and family audience, with story times, West African drumming performances, printmaking crafts, and interactive workshops.
• The National Archives Museum displays in its galleries the original Emancipation Proclamation signed by Abraham Lincoln and General Order #3, which announced the news of emancipation to Texans. Additionally, the museum hosts an interactive performance featuring Playback Theater/Verbal Gymnastics, highlighting a cast of professional actors, musicians, and storytellers who captivate and engage the audience through innovative theater and storytelling. Visitors are invited to share their personal stories and reflections on what Juneteenth represents to them, with their narratives brought to life by the group of performers.

Additional resources:

Digital Toolkit from the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

Virtual Bookshelf: Juneteenth from the National Endowment for the Humanities.

“Juneteenth” from the Library of Congress offers extensive additional resources.

Has your museum honored or celebrated Juneteenth?

Consider sharing with the field by pitching an idea about your museum’s work with your community, how your museum worked internally on the initiative or program, or another relevant angle for museum professionals. We are always looking for posts that empower museum professionals to do their best work; speak to a wide breadth of museum types, sizes, and disciplines; and reveal new, surprising ideas and connections. Read the Editorial Guidelines and make your pitch.

About Juneteenth:

A Proclamation on Juneteenth Day of Observance, 2024 – The White House

Juneteenth

On the historical significance of Juneteenth:

“The Historical Legacy of Juneteenth“ from the National Museum of African American History and Culture