This week, the National Juneteenth Museum will host its inaugural Freedom Vibes festival to celebrate the freedom and progress that Juneteenth represents. The four-day celebration is in honor of the Juneteenth holiday on June 19,

The City of Kilgore celebrated Juneteenth with a parade and cookout on Saturday. The Kilgore Legacy Foundation hosted the event and presented scholarships to their 2025 Juneteenth king and queen for essays they wrote on freedom.

In Odessa, the council is hosting its 26th annual Juneteenth celebration. This year’s theme is “Western and Bling,” a nod to both culture and flair and organizers are encouraging attendees to show up in cowboy boots, carry fans and add plenty of sparkle.

In Denver, for example, more than a dozen companies backed out of supporting the Juneteenth Music Festival, which is one of the city’s biggest celebrations of the holiday, according to Norman Harris, executive director of JMF Corporation, which puts on the event.

From parades to festivals and even free food, hundreds gather every year to take part in celebrating Juneteenth. But, the holiday surpasses the physical celebrations, and East Texas leaders say it's about celebrating freedom.

Juneteenth, established by President Joe Biden in 2021, is the most recently added federal holiday. Sometimes referred to as “Black Independence Day" or "Freedom Day," Juneteenth marks the day in 1865 that news of the Emancipation Proclamation made it to enslaved people in the South — nearly three years after it was actually signed.

Explore the vibrant Juneteenth celebrations in the Washington, D.C. region, despite funding gaps and political shifts elsewhere.

Several events are being held across North Texas to commemorate the day slaves in Texas learned that they had been freed.