AUSTIN, Texas — Juneteenth celebrates the day news that slavery had ended reached Texas on June 19, 1865. But Austin got an early start on the celebration on Friday.
Every year, Travis County departments gather to coordinate the celebration of Juneteenth. On Friday, the commissioners court invited the community and county staff to attend the 30th anniversary of the "Travis County Juneteenth Celebration" on 8th and Lavaca streets.
"It's important for African-American youth to know the sacrifice that was made for them and for other ethnic backgrounds to understand that we have not always been treated equal, that has not occurred over very long stretches of time," said Jeffery Travillion, Travis County Commissioner for Precinct 1.
The African-American Cultural Center at Austin Community College also held a Juneteenth celebration on Friday, with music, family-friendly activities and more.
But if you missed those events, don't worry! On Saturday, the "Juneteenth 2K Freedom Run/Walk" will kick off at 9:30 a.m. at the intersection of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Comal Street and end at Rosewood and Chestnut avenues. The Juneteenth Historical Parade will run the same route. It will start at 10 a.m. and run until noon.
Georgetown will also be having their 67th annual Juneteenth celebration on Saturday at the Georgetown Community Center from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
For more Juneteenth events in there area, click here.
Juneteenth celebrations started with the freed slaves of Galveston in the 1860s and have since spread across the nation and around the world.
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