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yesterday

Juneteenth Celebrations Proceed Nationwide Despite Sponsorship Shortfalls

Communities are staging walks, parades and cultural programs this year despite retreating corporate and government funding

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Wondering what to do on Juneteenth? Here's a list of events across Maryland, DC, and Virginia
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Overview

  • All 50 states host Juneteenth observances this year, from free admission to state parks and beaches to concerts, parades and Emancipation Proclamation exhibits in cities from New York to Houston.
  • Funding shortfalls have forced scale-backs as companies withdraw diversity and inclusion support and the National Endowment for the Arts rescinds grants for Juneteenth programs.
  • Several local governments including West Virginia and Scottsdale have cut or canceled official activities after ending DEI programs, leaving organizers scrambling for alternatives or postponing events.
  • At 98, activist Opal Lee will lead her annual 2.5-mile “Walk for Freedom” in Fort Worth to honor the delayed announcement of emancipation to Texas’s enslaved people.
  • In Houston, nonprofit CDFIs Houston Business Development Inc. and Private Leverage are leveraging Juneteenth momentum to advance affordable housing and small business loans aimed at narrowing the racial wealth gap.