STAR To Host Juneteenth Celebration In New Canaan

NEW CANAAN, CT — Stand Together Against Racism (STAR) will host the town's first Juneteenth celebration at the New Canaan Museum and Historical Society lawn.

According to a news release, the event will take place June 19 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Juneteenth, also known as African-American Emancipation Day, commemorates June 19, 1865, the date Union troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, bringing news to this remote outpost that the Emancipation Proclamation, issued two years prior, had freed all people enslaved in the Confederacy.

STAR's "Hearts of Freedom" Juneteenth community celebration will be a free public event for families featuring live music. For planning purposes, the organization encourages RSVPS at tinyurl.com/8n5hxsa2.

"The New Canaan Museum and Historical Society is thrilled to partner with STAR to host this Juneteenth celebration," Executive Director Nancy Geary said in a news release. "We look forward to having people come to learn more, to recognize this momentous day in history, and to enjoy an afternoon of community."

Leading to the Juneteenth community event, students in grades 5-8 are invited to learn more about the holiday and to create art for display at this community celebration on June 9 at 7:15 p.m. at the New Canaan Library (or via Zoom). Registration is required at tinyurl.com/2p9byh9v.

This program is a special session of the Youth Social Justice Book Group, a partnership of STAR, the library and LiveGirl, and is also free and open to all interested youth in those grade levels.

"The library's mission is to inspire lifelong learning," library spokesperson Rebecca Fox said in a news release, "so we are thrilled to support New Canaan's first Juneteenth celebration. This celebration demonstrates New Canaan's commitment to freedom and equity, and it offers an opportunity for community members to come together to explore a crucial moment in history and to engage in dialogue around that moment's ongoing significance."

Other community partners sponsoring the celebration include media partner the NewCanaanite and Bankwell.

"We're honored to stand with STAR and take part in their Juneteenth community picnic," Bankwell Director of Marketing Lucy French said in a news release. "It's a day to celebrate how far we've come in the struggle for equality, and to recognize how far we still need to go. Bankwell is committed to doing our part to help advance change in racial equality."