Juneteenth: Information & Educational Resources

6/19/2025 5:00:00 AM

Juneteenth Information and Educational Resources

In honor of Juneteenth, Maryland Athletics has compiled information and educational resources to help better understand this day in history and its significance.

Juneteenth, or Freedom Day, is an annual holiday to mark the end of slavery in the United States. First recognized as a national holiday in 2021, signed by President Biden. It commemorates the day news of the Emancipation Proclamation reached enslaved people in Galveston, Texas on June 19, 1865, three years after President Abraham Lincoln had issued the proclamation.

The Emancipation Proclamation was signed in 1863. But Black Texans didn’t hear they were free until June 19th, 1865. That date now marks the Black holiday of Juneteenth. We claim ourselves. We celebrate freedom, resistance, and joy!

Join #OurJuneteenth and #ImagineBlackFreedom.
— OurJuneteenth (@OurJuneteenth) June 19, 2020

Over the last few years, Maryland Athletics has celebrated Juneteenth by hearing the words of our student-athlete population.

On this #Juneteenth, our student-athletes narrate the poem "We Rose" to commemorate the day.

"We rose to be you, we rose to be me, Above everything expected, we rose"

To learn more about Juneteenth ?? https://t.co/QliinGrWaR pic.twitter.com/2BA7nx9iHY
— Maryland Terrapins (@umterps) June 19, 2020

On this #Juneteenth, we celebrate freedom, learn about our past and reflect on what still needs to be done to achieve liberty and equality for all.

Read Destiny Ward’s (@MarylandTrack) powerful essay on the meaning of #Juneteenth: https://t.co/enn6KIuZFA pic.twitter.com/BZKddSFpvW
— Maryland Terrapins (@umterps) June 19, 2022

Celebrating Juneteenth

Maryland Athletics has compiled information and educational resources to help better understand this day in history and its significance. https://t.co/pmCzvMTnlp
— Maryland Terrapins (@umterps) June 19, 2023

However, this year, we truly want individuals to go out and celebrate the national holiday. Here are a number of ways that individuals can participate locally and nationally.

Documentaries/Movies to Watch:

Origin (Hulu)
13th (Netflix)
I am not your Negro (Netflix/PBS)
The 1619 Project
The Loving Story (Amazon Prime)
The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson (Netflix)
American Son (Netflix)
When They See Us (Netflix)

How to Honor the Day:

Learn more about Juneteenth using one of these resources:
- Visit one of these events in the local area:
  - Juneteenth DC Community Festival (Thursday, June 19 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.) ONE DC Black Workers & Wellness Center located at 2500 Martin Luther King Jr Ave
  - Rockville's Juneteenth Celebration details will be available soon.
  - Annapolis Juneteenth Parade & Festival (Thursday, June 19 - Sunday, June 22).
- Visit a local African-American History Museum or visit one online
  - The Smithsonian is hosting a Juneteenth Community Day on Saturday, Jun 17, 2023 from 11:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., called Senses of Freedom: The Taste, Sound, and Experience of an African American Celebration. For more on the event and the full Smithsonian Juneteenth event calendar, click here.
  - Visit the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC.
- Support Black business

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