Sun Village will continue Los Angeles County’s longest-running Juneteenth celebration while Santa Monica will conduct its 34th annual Juneteenth Celebration Saturday, one day after the federal holiday commemorating the emancipation of slaves in the United States.
The unincorporated community adjacent to Palmdale has been holding a Juneteenth celebration for more than 50 years, but the exact number is not available, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation.
The 10 a.m. celebration at Jackie Robinson Park in Littlerock will include the singing of “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” performances by the Universal Unique Drill Team, and a community entertainment showcase featuring local musicians, singers, dancers, spoken word and youth performers.
Former Palmdale City Councilman Fred Thompson will deliver the keynote address. He lived in Sun Village during the 1950s and 1960s, when Blacks were prohibited from purchasing homes in Palmdale.
As a young man, Thompson worked at the Sun Village Teen Center, which was established through federal funding as part of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s War on Poverty.
“Lift Every Voice and Sing” has been designated by the NAACP as the Black national anthem since 1917.
Santa Monica’s celebration will be held from 1 to 7 p.m. at Virginia Avenue Park and showcase a mosaic of Black musical genres, including an interactive drum workshop with Project KnuckleHead, and soul, funk and jazz performances.
There will also be community resource booths, food trucks, local Black-owned small businesses and vendors, and all-ages art activities celebrating Santa Monica’s Belmar neighborhood, which was demolished in the 1950s through eminent domain to make way for the Civic Auditorium and Civic Center.
The theme is “A Legacy of Liberation: Honoring Our Resistance and Resilience,” representing the past and ongoing fight for equity and justice for Black Americans.
A block party celebrating Juneteenth will be held in downtown Long Beach from noon to 8 p.m. with live music on two stages, food vendors, a Black Business Tour with shuttle service and activities honoring the legacy of the VIP Records.
The Culver City Juneteenth Celebration will run from noon to 3 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Park Field. It will include the singing of “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” dance and musical performances, a DJ, a brief program on the history of Juneteenth, reading and children’s areas.
West Hollywood’s Juneteenth Celebration from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. at West Hollywood Park will highlight local Black-owned and businesses and nonprofit organizations and commemorate and honor the historical significance of Juneteenth.
“Juneteenth is not only a reminder of a painful chapter in American history, but it also serves as an opportunity for people to recommit to combat all forms of modern-day slavery, human trafficking, and racial injustice,” according to a statement from the city.
Attendees are highly encouraged to RSVP for the free event via Eventbrite at shorturl.at/Odoeq.
In Orange County, the OC Juneteenth Celebration will be held at Great Park Palm Court Complex in Irvine from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. It will include music, dance, live performances, a food village, a kids’ village, wellness lounge and marketplace.
A Juneteenth Festival will be held at Santa Ana’s Centennial Park from noon to 6 p.m.
On Sunday, a Juneteenth Celebration and Concert will be held at Polliwog Park in Manhattan Beach from 2 to 7 p.m., with WST CMPLX performing from 5 to 6:30 p.m. The nine-piece music collective blends jazz, R&B, neo-soul and hip-hop.
Juneteenth marks the anniversary of Union Army Gen. Gordon Granger reading General Order No. 3 in Galveston, Texas on June 19, 1865, which began, “The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free.”
“Juneteenth marks the day freedom finally reached the last enslaved Black Americans in Galveston, Texas, more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation,” Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said in a statement Friday.
“Even after freedom was declared, it was delayed. That reality is difficult to comprehend, but it reminds us that progress is not inevitable — and that freedom must always be safeguarded. More than 160 years later, we honor that moment while recognizing that the work of turning freedom into full equality remains unfinished.
“Today is a time to reflect on the profound journey of Black Americans, celebrate their immeasurable contributions to our nation, and recommit ourselves to building a future where opportunity, dignity and justice are realities for all.”