Montgomery County to Host Juneteenth Celebration

A celebration will take over BlackRock Center for the Arts as Montgomery County holds a public ceremony recognizing Juneteenth in their 18th annual event.

The ceremony commemorates June 19, 1865, the day Union General Gordon Granger and 2,000 federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, to take possession of the state and enforce the emancipation of its enslaved persons.

The event will take place on June 17 at 6 p.m.

This year’s celebration will include Montgomery County Police Chief J. Thomas Manger reading the Emancipation Proclamation, remarks from County Executive Ike Leggett, the Montgomery County NAACP’s ACT-SO (Afro-Academic, Cultural, Technological and Scientific Olympics) award-winning student performing artists and the music of New Orleans musician Alan Green.

The program is sponsored by the Montgomery County Executive’s Office of Community Partnerships, the Office of Human Resources’ EEO Compliance Unit, the Office of Human Rights, Montgomery County Public Libraries, Montgomery College, NAACP-Montgomery County Chapter and the Lincoln Park Historical Foundation.

Admission is free and traditional Juneteenth refreshments will be served.

For more information, call 240-777-8450.

About Valerie Bonk

Valerie Bonk is a multimedia reporter and community engagement specialist with Montgomery Community Media (MCM).

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