Juneteenth In DC To Be Marked With Rallies, Marches, Protests

WASHINGTON, DC — The District of Columbia celebrates D.C. Emancipation Day every April 16 to commemorate the passage of The D.C. Compensated Emancipation Act of 1862, which freed 3,100 people in bondage. However, many District residents will join others across the country Friday in observance of Juneteenth.

Juneteenth refers to June 19, 1865, when news of the Emancipation Proclamation made it to the last state. Union soldiers, led by Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger, arrived at Galveston, Texas, with news that the war had ended and that the enslaved were now free. This marked the end of slavery in the United States.

Many of the people commemorating Juneteenth in the District will take part in demonstrations and march at various places around the city. Some events are taking place online, while others —such as the Juneteenth Front Yard Festival for Justice! — encourage residents to celebrate outdoors in their own neighborhoods.

Here is a list of some of the events planned throughout the District on Friday to honor Juneteenth:

• Juneteenth Peaceful March and Rally: 9 a.m.-1 p.m., 2208 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave. S.E.
• Black Students Matter Rally: 11 a.m.-2 p.m., Freedom Plaza, 1455 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.
• Black Mamas March: 11 a.m., at Navy Memorial Plaza, 701 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.
• Juneteenth Protest: Noon, start at National Cathedral and end at Dupont Circle.
• Defend Black Women Feeder March: 1 p.m., reflecting pool at 899 North Capitol.
• Freedom Day March: 2 p.m., Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, 1400 Constitution Ave. N.W.
• Defend Black Lives Event: 3 p.m., Malcolm X Park (Meridian Hill Park), 2500 16th St., N.W.
• Defend Black Lives Event: 3 p.m., Lafayette Square, 1600 H St., N.W.

• Defend Black Lives Event: 5 p.m., Freedom Plaza, 1455 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.
• Don't Mute DC Juneteenth Protest: Virtual events beginning 12 p.m., and ending 11 p.m.
• Ward 7 March and Caravan, Noon, RFK Parking Lot on Benning and Oklahoma Avenue, Northeast.
• DC Juneteenth Front Yard Festival for Justice! 6-10 p.m., across Washington, D.C.
• From Protest to the Polls: Saturday, June 20. 10-11:30 a.m., Faith Moravian Church, 405 Riggs Road, N.E.

All of the protests (and related events) we’ve found for June 19th in DC, Maryland, and Virginia on one page :)
DM us if you want us to send you the flyer/address/other info for any of the listed protests/events! pic.twitter.com/NfSiZ4jduc
— DC Teens Action (@dcteensaction) June 18, 2020