June is an important month to highlight two key diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB) milestones for Bostonians and Massachusetts residents to come together to support and uplift the various communities that call that Greater Boston Area home, Pride Month and Juneteenth.
We commemorate the impactful legacy of Juneteenth as a milestone in the emancipation of slaves in the United States. Recognized as a state holiday in Massachusetts in 2020 and as a federal holiday in 2021, it serves as a day to educate about the past and to advocate for social justice in the present.
The Boston Juneteenth Committee and the Museum of the National Center of Afro American Artists, the volunteer-based community education initiative dedicated to hosting the annual Emancipation Observance in the city, will be planning programming around the theme of “Honoring Our Martyrs and Heroes.” They will hold a flag raising ceremony at the Dillaway-Thomas House, a parade, and an Emancipation Program at the Museum of the National Center of Afro American Artists.
Additionally, other Juneteenth celebrations around the city will include the three-day Embrace Ideas Festival that will host keynotes, panels, and live music all rooted in anti-racism, a free open house at the Museum of Fine Arts featuring the exhibits “Touching Roots: Black Ancestral Legacies in the Americas” and “Hear Me Now: The Black Potters on Old Edgefield, South Carolina” as well as a City Talks discussion about the legacy and future of Juneteenth, and the annual Juneteenth Joy: Focus on Freedom community-wide event in Hyde Park.
If you would like to mark Juneteenth in your own way, you can visit the Museum of African American History and walk the Boston African American Black Heritage Trail with the Boston African American National Historic Site to learn more about the historical impacts of slavery locally, the abolitionist movement and the Underground Railroad.
What better way to herald in the beginning of summer than through celebrating diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging, honoring those who struggled and paved the way for us in the past, and advocating for social justice, human rights and progress today!