CLARKSVILLE, Tenn (CLARKSVILLENOW) – Clarksville residents celebrated Junteenth on Friday, June 19, to celebrate black businesses, highlight the community’s fight for equality and recognize the progress that has been made.
Juneteenth commemorates the anniversary of Union soldiers arriving in Galveston, Texas on June 19, 1865, with orders that all slaves in Texas were free in accordance with the Emancipation Proclamation.
People throughout Texas started celebrating the event every year starting in 1866, and the celebration spread throughout the South, eventually becoming a widely recognized holiday many call Juneteenth. The holiday is also called Freedom Day or Jubilee Day.
Clarksville Mayor Joe Pitts signed a proclamation officially recognizing the day on Thursday, June 18.
“We are celebrating and showcasing Black-owned businesses and vendors on Juneteenth. It’s Freedom Day,” said Kelvin Vennett, who held a Juneteenth Pop-Up Shop at his Riverside Drive business, Train 36ixty. Local business owners set up booths and met together.
On Peachers Mill Road, behind Kenwood Elementary School, families gathered for a Juneteenth Cookout with music, games and more.
