This week, thousands across the country will come together to celebrate on June 19, or Juneteenth, which commemorates the day the last enslaved Americans learned of their freedom. 

Though the Emancipation Proclamation freed enslaved people in 1863, news did not spread to Confederate strongholds until the end of the Civil War. On June 19, 1865, two months after the end of the war, enslaved people in Texas were told by Union troops that they were free. 

Black communities have been celebrating the holiday since its inception, but it only became an official federal holiday in 2021. It was the first federal holiday created since Martin Luther King Jr. Day was established in 1983. 

Many parades and festivals took place last weekend, but there are still plenty of ways to celebrate.

Charlotte 

SouthPark Library’s Juneteenth Festival, June 18 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., Charlotte Mecklenburg Library - SouthPark Regional

University City Juneteenth Art Fest, June 19 from 4 to 8 p.m., Shoppes at University Place

Juneteenth at the Gantt, June 19 from 12 to 6 p.m., Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture 

Kannapolis Juneteenth Celebration, June 19 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Veterans Park on Main Street 

An Evening of Homecoming, June 19 from 5:30 to 8:30 pm, Stumptown Park 

Juneteenth: Poetry With Passion, June 19 from 7 to 10 p.m., Zodiac Bar and Grill 

26th Annual QCT Charlotte Pilgrimage Tour - Juneteenth 2024, June 19-30, The Market at 7th Street 

Juneteenth: A Unity Celebration, June 20 from 6 to 9:30 p.m., The Brooklyn Collective 

Concord-Cabarrus Juneteenth Celebration, June 22 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Barber-Scotia College

Juneteenth Event, June 22 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Historic Rosedale 

Juneteenth in North Carolina, June 22 from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m., President James K. Polk State Historic Site 

Triangle

Synthesize: A Juneteenth Celebration of Creativity, Technology and Community, June 18 from 5:30 to 8 p.m., American Underground

Juneteenth Jubilee 2024, June 19 from 1 to 4 p.m., John Chavis Memorial Park 

Seeds of Freedom: Juneteenth at Oak View, June 19 from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m., Historic Oak View County Park 

POSTED: Juneteenth Variety Show, June 19 at 5:30 p.m., Ruby Deluxe

Making a Way Out of No Way, June 20 from 6:30 to 8 p.m., Main Library - Durham County Library 

Juneteenth: In Song & Word, June 21 from 6:30 to 9 p.m., North Carolina Museum of History 

Legends Gala, June 22 from 7 to 11 p.m., Contemporary Art Museum of Raleigh Juneteenth Legends Gala at CAM Raleigh

M.A.N.iFest, June 23 from 2 to 9 p.m., Fuquay Varina Arts Center

Juneteenth Jubilee, June 23 from 5 to 8 p.m., Haven Farm 

Mountains 

Juneteenth Food & Facts, June 18 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., East Asheville Public Library 

“From Slavery to Juneteenth Jubilee” with Mary D. Williams, June 19 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Black Wall Street AVL

Reflection on Gentrification of the African American Neighborhoods, June 20 from 12 to 1:30 p.m., Burton Street Recreation Center

Juneteenth Commemoration Gala, June 20 from 7 to 9:30 p.m., Stephens-Lee Community Center  

Early African American Health Care & Today’s African American Inequities, June 21 from 12 to 1:30 p.m., Tempie-Avery Montford Center 

Downtown After 5: Juneteenth, June 21 from 5 to 9 p.m., N. Lexington Avenue

Coast 

Juneteenth Breakfast, June 19 from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m., Thalian Hall Center for the Performing Arts

Juneteenth Celebration, June 19 at 1 p.m., 2222 S College Road, Wilmington

The Underground Railroad in Eastern North Carolina, June 20 from 7 to 8:30 p.m., North Carolina History Center at Tryon Place

Juneteenth Gospel Fest, June 23 at 2 p.m., Williston Middle School 

Bad and Boujee Black History Brunch, June 23 from 1 to 7 p.m., Belle Vue

Juneteenth Teach-In, June 26, from 12 to 3:30 p.m., Upperman Center at UNCW

Juneteenth Celebration: Poetry Workshop with Jaki Shelton Green, June 29 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Cameron Art Museum 

Juneteenth Pageant, June 30 at 2 p.m., MLK Center