JAMESTOWN, Va. — Jamestown Settlement will be presenting "A Prelude to Juneteenth" which will launch a series of community events in partnership with the Juneteenth Community Consortium.
The anniversary of Juneteenth is approaching and people from across the country will be taking time to remember the historic moment when African American slaves were actually awarded their freedom.
On June 19, 1865, Major General Gordon Granger and Union Army troops marched to Galveston, Texas to enforce the Emancipation Proclamation that Lincoln gave two years beforehand which proclaimed that all slaves in the United States were now free.
Jamestown Settlement will be hosting Dr. Cassandra Newby-Alexander, endowed Professor of Virginia Black History and Culture at Norfolk State University and Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation for "A Prelude to Juneteenth" on June 14 from 7-8:30 p.m.
Dr. Newby-Alexander will be doing a thought-provoking lecture on the history of Juneteenth and Jamestown's relationship to the legacy of slavery and emancipation.
The Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation will introduce a 90-minute performance program featuring song interludes and dramatic readings from primary sources.
Admission to "A Prelude to Juneteenth" and admission to Jamestown Settlement are free to all on June 19. Registration is encouraged to attend the prelude.
Jamestown Settlement is located on Route 31 just southwest of Williamsburg and parking is free.
The Juneteenth Community Consortium has a full list of local Juneteenth events on its site.
