Each Juneteenth we come together, reflect, rejoice and be in community with one another here in DC!

Juneteenth serves as a historical milestone that honors those Black ancestors who survived this country’s institution of bondage, as well as a celebration of the Black community’s legacy of resistance, perseverance, and strength of the human spirit. 

In remembering that legacy, it is important to look at the past, understand our history, and strengthen our resolve to keep fighting the racism that is still so deeply ingrained within our systems to this day.

Our celebration is a full week of events open to the community.
Past events during the Juneteenth week of Celebration and Education in DC included:

  • If Not Now, When? A Discussion on Reparations

  • Seeding Black Co-ops — an expo

  • M4BL-DC General Assembly on Reparations

  • Liberation Fundraiser

Juneteenth Community Celebration and Resource Fair

Finishing out the week, Stop Police Terror Project DC hosts its annual celebration in a public park in DC. We celebrate the Black community’s legacy of resistance, perseverance and strength of the human spirit. With food, music, and fun activities for all. Local Black-owned artists and entrepreneurs sell their wares and community organizations share about their work and resources at our Vendor and Resource Fair.

 
 

Why Celebrate Juneteenth?

Juneteenth serves as a historical milestone that honors those Black ancestors who survived this country’s institution of bondage and those of us who continue to do so, as well as celebrate the Black community’s legacy of resistance, perseverance and strength of the human spirit. On June 19, 1865, enslaved Black people in Texas got word that slavery had ended, two years after Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation.

The police as an institution has its very root in slavery, and that from the very beginning police were not in place to ensure the safety of Black people, but to surveil, abuse and contain Black people to serve at the whim of slave owners and protect their economic interests.

Today—centuries after formal emancipation—the role of police remains essentially unchanged, especially In poor and working-class Black communities. Stop Police Terror Project DC calls not only for an end to police abuses, but also for critical investments and solutions to systemic issues such as housing, healthcare, jobs and education. It also informs our efforts to push for more community-based alternatives to policing and public safety.

We hope you will join us to uplift this important legacy of Juneteenth and connect those struggles with the fight that continues today.