Juneteenth commemorates the date in 1865 when word of emancipation finally reached slaves in Galveston, Texas.
USC to host online event to commemorate Juneteenth
The event on Saturday will reflect on and celebrate Black heritage through student tributes, artistic performances and various speakers.
For the second year in a row, the USC community will gather online to commemorate Juneteenth, a day of reflection and a celebration of Black heritage.
Saturday’s event begins at noon and can be accessed through the Zoom link on the university’s website.
“It is so important for the USC campus community to recognize the importance and impact of Juneteenth on our Black Trojan community, as well as the Trojan community at large,” said Greedley Harris, director of USC’s Center for Black Cultural and Student Affairs. “Recognizing this country’s past can help inform our future, especially regarding social justice and the Black Lives Matter movement.”
Juneteenth marks the date in 1865 when word of emancipation finally reached slaves in Galveston, Texas — the far boundary of the former Confederacy — 2 1/2 years after President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation.
On Tuesday, the Senate passed a bill that would make Juneteenth the 12th federal holiday.
The commemoration will include student tributes, artistic performances and speakers. Chris Manning, USC’s first chief inclusion and diversity officer, will lead off the Juneteenth event and introduce President Carol L. Folt. She will be followed by more than a dozen other speakers, including:
- Several USC student-athletes.
- Felicia Washington, USC senior vice president for human resources.
- Renee Smith-Maddox, clinical professor and diversity liaison at the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work.
- Ange-Marie Hancock Alfaro, Dean’s Professor and chair of political science and international relations at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences.
