Today is the 150th Anniversary of Juneteenth, which is the oldest known celebration commemorating the end of slavery in the United States.
On June 19, 1865, Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger and Union Soldiers arrived at Galveston, Texas, with the news that the war was over and the slaves were now free. This was 2 1/2 years after President Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation.
The Emancipation Program is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. today at Lincoln University Soldiers Memorial Plaza, with a brief ceremony. Mayor Carrie Tergin will bring greetings, present a proclamation and participate in the Laying of the Wreath. The program will go to Memorial Hall immediately after the ceremony with a presentation by the Buffalo Soldiers of the Greater Kansas City/Leavenworth Area Chapter Ninth and Tenth (Horse) Calvary Association
The celebration continues at 7 p.m. with the Little Mr. & Miss Juneteenth Pageant at Lincoln University's Pawley Theater in Martin Luther King Hall. Boys and Girls ages 4-9 will compete for the crown.
This year the Juneteenth Footprints Project, "Dance/Fitness and Nutrition/Step Camp," was held at Jason Gymnasium Dance Studio. Participants learned a variety of dance techniques and art forms as well as basic knowledge and tools for success in nutrition and fitness. Participants will perform a dance production during the Grande Stage event at the Heritage Festival on Saturday. The camp is sponsored in part by HealthCare USA.
The Grande Stage event will begin at noon Saturday with an opening ceremony and the presentation of the Little Mr. and Miss Juneteenth Court and contestants.
Activities will include: games, bounce house, face painting, line dancing, food vendors, exhibitors and entertainment.
Featured events are: "Juneteenth's Got Talent" competition; Da-Warehouse Warriors Drum Line and Drill Team of St. Louis; Footprints Project Dance Production; "Grooving with the Groove" line dancing; and the Rick Wade Band of St. Louis.
All activities are free and open to the public.
For more information, check www.juneteenthjcmo.org.