From the historic parade to poetry: Here are 13 ways to celebrate Juneteenth in Austin

Deborah Sengupta Stith, Austin American-Statesman
Updated ·7 min read
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Tuba players from the Austin All-Star Band dance in the street during the annual Juneteenth parade in East Austin in 2022. This year's parade will be on Saturday and will be followed by a daylong festival in Rosewood Park.
Tuba players from the Austin All-Star Band dance in the street during the annual Juneteenth parade in East Austin in 2022. This year's parade will be on Saturday and will be followed by a daylong festival in Rosewood Park.

President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, liberating enslaved African Americans in secessionist states, on Jan. 1, 1863, but the news did not reach enslaved Texans for two years. Many enslavers ignored the directive until Union troops arrived to enforce it.

On June 19, 1865, U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger issued a statement in Galveston urging locals to comply. Juneteenth "Emancipation Day" celebrations began in Texas the next year.

From the archive: What is Juneteenth? Here’s what the holiday means

Austin artists and cultural leaders will recognize this year's holiday with celebrations of Black culture and commemorations that recognize the strides made toward equity and the hard work that is still to come.

Here are a dozen ways to celebrate Juneteenth in Austin:

Monday through June 19: Stay Black and Live Festival at the Carver Museum

The East Austin museum preserves and celebrates Black history, culture and arts all year. For Juneteenth, the Carver will host a weeklong bash centered on the theme “Austin Family Reunion.” Events will kick off with a speaker series during the week. On Friday, the museum will host an all-ages dance party with DJ Cysum, DJ Dontizl and Body Rock ATX. On Saturday, there will be a post-parade “cookout” with barbecue, vendors and more. The festival will close out next Monday with historian and Pulitzer Prize winner Dr. Annette Gordon-Reed discussing her book "On Juneteenth." More information is at juneteenthatx.com.

Thursday: Paying Tribute to the Journey

The Austin chapter of the Anti-Defamation League will host a webinar with Dr. Peniel E. Joseph from the University of Texas LBJ School of Public Affairs. Joseph will discuss the history of Juneteenth, Black Americans’ ongoing struggle for equal rights and his book “The Third Reconstruction,” winner of the 2023 Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Book Award. Those interested may register online.

Friday: Sonic Frootz at Antone’s

Unwilling to accept a single day of celebration, the husband and wife hip-hop duo Riders Against the Storm has claimed the entire month of June as Black Music Month. Each week, Jonathan “Chaka” Mahone and Ghislaine “Qi Dada” Jean are presenting a showcase at Austin’s home of the blues that demonstrates the broad range of Black talent in the Austin music scene. Friday's show will feature RAS performing alongside Tribe Mafia, Wes Denzel, Lunar Rae and Sketch Band. Admission is $20. More information is at antonesnightclub.com.

Saturday: Juneteenth Parade and Park Festival

The historic parade through East Austin will kick off at 10 a.m. at Salina Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. The parade route runs down Chicon Street to Rosewood Avenue and ends in Rosewood Park, where a daylong festival will feature music, vendors and more. Performers will include Kenne Smith, Nayla Wilmore, Candace Bellamy and New Orleans Beau. The festival will run from noon to 9 p.m. More information is at juneteenthcentraltexas.com.

Saturday: Black Makers Market at the African American Cultural and Heritage Facility

The cultural center in a historic house on East 11th Street will spill into the adjacent lot for an outdoor community extravaganza from noon to 6 p.m. Visitors can browse the wares of more than 40 artisans and makers while moving to the grooves of DJs and noshing on foods from Black-owned bakers and eateries. The event also will have a kids corner and Instagram-ready photo ops. More information is at austintexas.gov/event/juneteenth-celebration-2.

Sunday: Juneteenth Celebration at the Neill-Cochran House Museum

The day party at one of the city’s oldest historical residences will include dominos, lawn games and a painting class led by local artist Rejina Thomas. The museum, a mid-1800s estate featuring Greek revival architecture, has the only intact and publicly accessible dwelling for enslaved people in Austin. Museum curators have preserved the space and researched the stories of the people who labored there in an effort to reckon with the darkest era of the city’s troubled past. While you’re there, pick up the Black West Austin Driving Tour, a self-guided journey to historic sites in Wheatsville and Clarksville, two of Austin’s original 15 freedman colonies established after the Civil War. Activities and the driving tour are included with museum admission, which is $10 for adults, $8 for students and free for those 12 and under. See nchmuseum.org for more details.

Sunday: Diaspora Food Festival at Armadillo Den

Trace the way the culinary traditions of Africa have moved through the world at this event from Latin City, the creator of the traveling Sazon Latin Food Festival (which will come to Austin on Sept. 17). Afro-Colombian, Jamaican and Haitian are among the cuisines that will be represented. Drinks will be available from the Armadillo Den bar. The event will be from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Entry will be free, but an RSVP is required at ourlatincity.com/food.

Gladys Knight will be joined by her longtime friend Patti LaBelle for a special Juneteenth show at Bass Concert Hall on June 19.
Gladys Knight will be joined by her longtime friend Patti LaBelle for a special Juneteenth show at Bass Concert Hall on June 19.

June 19: Gladys Knight and Patti LaBelle at Bass Concert Hall

The two soul queens and lifelong friends began shaping the face of American popular music six decades ago. Beginning their careers in the pre-civil rights era, they both went on to perform in the White House for Barack Obama, America’s first Black president. Each woman is on a solo U.S. tour right now. Knight has been mixing covers of American standards by Stevie Wonder, George Gershwin and more with Pips hits such as “Love Overboard,” while LaBelle has been covering the likes of Donna Summer and Foreigner and rattling the rafters with “Lady Marmalade.” The two will converge in Texas for a pair of special joint performances celebrating Juneteenth. (The other one will be at Texas Trust CU Theatre in Grand Prairie on Sunday.) Tickets are $69 and up; visit texasperformingarts.com.

June 19: Third Annual Juneteenth Freedom Summit at UT LBJ School

Dr. Peniel Joseph, founding director of the LBJ school's Center for the Study of Race and Democracy (CSRD), brings together a panel of scholars and community leaders to examine the history of Juneteenth within the context of the current moment of racial reckoning in America. Amber Payne, publisher of The Emancipator, Virginia Cumberbatch co-founder of Rosa Rebellion and Rudy Metayer, President & Executive Director of Texas Black Caucus Foundation will speak alongside Richard Reddick, Stephanie Lang, Ya'ke Smith and Anthony Collier from the University. The panelists will explore issues around voting rights, Black history in K-12 public schools, and freedom of speech and expression. The event will conclude with a performance by Riders Against the Storm. Free and open to the public. 2 p.m. RSVP here.

June 19: Monday night blues jam at Kenny Dorham’s Backyard

Harold McMillan’s Kenny Dorham all-stars will be joined by special guests for an extended jam from 4 to 10 p.m. McMillan noted that the outdoor venue in the heart of Austin’s African American Cultural Heritage District is up to capacity with food trucks featuring a “full house of businesses owned by folks of color.” Find out more at facebook.com/KennyDorhamsBackyard.

June 19: 'Miss Juneteenth' screening at AFS Cinema

In the heartfelt feature-length debut from Texas native Channing Godfrey Peoples, a struggling single mother and former beauty pageant queen whose life went awry tries to persuade her rebellious daughter to continue her legacy as Miss Juneteenth. Tickets cost $13.50, and the screening will begin at 6 p.m. Visit austinfilm.org to learn more.

More: Torch Literary Arts seeks to light the path for Black women writers

June 19: Juneteenth Day of Freedom Celebration at Antone’s

Join musicians Kam Franklin, Kalu James and Magna Carda plus visual artists Richard Samuel (Riches Art Gallery) and Raasin McIntosh (Raasin in the Sun) in the club’s upstairs lounge at 5:30 p.m. for a conversation titled "How to Keep the Creative Fire Burning While Facing the Realities of Being Black in America/in Austin," hosted by Chris Tobar from OfColor. The ticket price includes one cocktail, a raffle ticket and entry to Antone’s weekly Blue Monday jam. Visitantonesnightclub.com for more details.

Amanda Johnston, future Texas poet laureate and director of Torch Literary Arts, will host a pair of readings June 20.
Amanda Johnston, future Texas poet laureate and director of Torch Literary Arts, will host a pair of readings June 20.

June 20: Carrying the Torch at the Capitol, African American Cultural Heritage Facility

At an event billed as a “Juneteenth Remembrance and Reading for the Future,” Amanda Johnston, future Texas poet laureate and director of Torch Literary Arts, will host a group of poets, writers and guest speakers who will share original work that acknowledges the federal holiday while celebrating the future of African Americans in the Lone Star State. Speeches and readings will take place starting at 7 p.m. at the Texas African American History Memorial at the Capitol. Then Torch will host a dance party with readings and food at the cultural heritage facility at 8 p.m. More information is at torchliteraryarts.org.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Celebrate Juneteenth in Austin with parade, poetry, music and more