2023 Juneteenth Celebration and Fundraiser
Ohio University Eastern is excited to sponsor the Ohio Valley Underground Railroad Museum Celebration and Fundraiser from 5 to 8 p.m. on Friday, June 16, 2023 at River City in Wheeling, leading up to the Juneteenth holiday.
Although Juneteenth, celebrated on June 19 each year, has long been celebrated in the African American community, this monumental event remains largely unknown to most Americans. Annually, starting in June 2021, Ohio University celebrates this occasion with programming and activities.
Agenda
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5:00 p.m.Opening RemarksKristina Estle, Underground Railroad Museum Director and Ron Scott, Chairman of the Board will speak during the opening ceremony of the Juneteenth Celebration & Fundraiser.
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5:15 p.m."Diving Into Our History" Presentation by LeVar MartinLet's dive into our history as not only Black people in America, but as history that is a part of American History. As we discuss the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, to June 19th 1865, to the beginning of reconstruction.
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6:00 p.m."A Taste of Africa"Dinner will feature an assortment of dishes from different African countries. Catered by Erica Ndinga, from Congo.
Adult beverages will be available at the Cash Bar. -
6:30 p.m.Rory Rennick Magic ShowLive performance by magician Rory Rennick, who will perform an act telling the story of Henry “Box” Brown, an enslaved man who shipped himself to freedom in a wooden box.
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7:00 p.m."Decent into Slavery" Exhibit unveiled by Vondel BellThe Underground Railroad Museum is excited to unveil our newest exhibit "Decent into Slavery. Funding for this exhibit was provided by the Belmont County Tourism Council.
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7:30 p.m.Basket Raffle and Closing RemarksThe basket raffle drawing will be held at 7:45 p.m. Winners must be present to win.
About Juneteenth
On “Freedom’s Eve,” or the eve of January 1, 1863, the first Watch Night services took place. On that night, enslaved and free African Americans gathered in churches and private homes all across the country awaiting news that the Emancipation Proclamation had taken effect. At the stroke of midnight, prayers were answered as all enslaved people in Confederate States were declared legally free. Union soldiers, many of whom were black, marched onto plantations and across cities in the south reading small copies of the Emancipation Proclamation spreading the news of freedom in Confederate States. Only through the Thirteenth Amendment did emancipation end slavery throughout the United States.
But not everyone in Confederate territory would immediately be free. Even though the Emancipation Proclamation was made effective in 1863, it could not be implemented in places still under Confederate control. As a result, in the westernmost Confederate state of Texas, enslaved people would not be free until much later. Freedom finally came on June 19, 1865, when some 2,000 Union troops arrived in Galveston Bay, Texas. The army announced that the more than 250,000 enslaved black people in the state, were free by executive decree. This day came to be known as “Juneteenth,” by the newly freed people in Texas.
Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture. (2020). Historic Legacy of Juneteenth. Retrieved online.
Learn more about the Historic Legacy of Juneteeth by visiting the National Museum of African American History and Culture website.
The Ohio Valley Underground Railroad Juneteeth Celebration and Fundraiser have been made possible by grant funding provided by Mid Atlantic Arts Funding.
Special thanks to our premiere sponsor Ohio University Eastern.