Palm Springs Juneteenth event on Saturday a time for celebration, contemplation

Organizers of the annual Juneteenth celebration in the city are hard at work assuring the event will be both joyous and thought-provoking.

The news: June 19 (Juneteenth) represents Independence Day for African Americans. People across the country recognize and honor this day by celebrating the June 19, 1865 emancipation of people who were enslaved.

• Palm Springs is one of the few cities in Southern California to sponsor a Juneteenth celebration and the only city in the Coachella Valley hosting an event. This year’s celebration is one day earlier than Juneteenth, on Saturday, June 18.
   
• While this year marks the third official event in the city, members of the Coachella Valley’s Black community have been gathering informally for decades to mark the day.

Zoom in: Look for an array of fun educational and cultural activities, sports, games, food, and live entertainment. Everything is free.

When/where: The event takes places at James O. Jessie Desert Highland Unity Center, 480 West Tramview Rd., from 12 p.m. until 6 p.m. on Saturday, June 18. 

💭 Our take: Even if you don’t attend Saturday’s event, we think you should contemplate important questions event organizers posed on their flyers: “Are we really free? Or is it a continuous fight for our freedom?”