Juneteenth 2023: Here's A List Of Events Happening In Metro Detroit

METRO DETROIT — Juneteenth observances in the Metro Detroit area kicks off with the Juneteenth Freedom Fest weekend in Detroit's Corktown area.

The weekend event starts with a Beats and BBQ Block Party at Batch Brewing Company in Corktown on Friday, June 19. Saturday will be a Juneteenth Jubilee Stroll on the Livernois Avenue of Fashion. Sunday will be a Juneteenth Freedom Fest at Eastern Market Shed 5.

The Monday, June 19, national holiday commemorates the day in 1865, more than two years after President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, when word finally reached the last enslaved people in Texas that the Civil War had ended, and they were free.

Also known as Emancipation Day, Freedom Day and Jubilee Day, Juneteenth is the oldest-known celebration of the end of slavery in the United States. In 2021, President Joe Biden signed legislation making it a federal holiday, the first since the addition of Martin Luther King Jr. Day in 1983.

Other Juneteenth events in the metro Detroit area include:

• Community Juneteenth Celebration, June 17 noon-6 p.m. at the Dr. LaVonne M. Sheffield Bridge Center Library, 9928 Grand River Ave.
• Juneteenth Jubilee Celebration at The Wright, June 19 from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History
• Emagine Entertainment Juneteenth Film Festival, Emagine Royal Oak, featuring films such as Respect, Ray, Hustle & Flow, Get On Up, Cadillac Records, Amazing Grace, and others.
• Pontiac Juneteenth Freedom Day Event, Events begin on Bagley Street in Pontiac, and moves into downtown Pontiac with a parade at 4 p.m.
• H2BE Dearborn Juneteenth Weekend Celebration, Dearborn City Hall Artspace Lofts, Dearborn City Hall Park and Dearborn Historical Museum.
• Juneteenth Closing Celebration, Tuesday, June 20 from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. at Wayne State University's Gullen Mall.

• Related: What Is Juneteenth? Celebrating The End Of Slavery

Because Juneteenth is an official U.S. holiday, banks, federal offices and post offices in metro Detroit will be closed Monday.