"So we're inviting the entire community out for an American holiday," Lyric Theatre Executive Director Christian Adair emphasizes. "It's very important that everyone knows that Juneteenth is unique to America and what it stands for."
Adair introduced just one of six separate events planned on and around June 19. Lexington's longest-running Juneteenth ceremony—commemorating the fall of slavery in Galveston, Texas, two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was issued—is also marking its 20th anniversary.
Adair said the fraught political environment can't help but influence this year's observance of the holiday.
"I think it's even more important now than ever because when you have a political climate that's willing to erase history, erase truth, roll back progress, you have to stay the course," he told WUKY. "People need to remember that we're still gonna be here. The people will still achieve our goals, aspirations, and this country will still continue to to recognize its past."
The Black Hamlets project, known as "A Sense of Place," will officially cut the ribbon on the restored Cadantown Rosenwald School, a one room school built to educate black students prior to desegregation in the South.
Juneteenth flags will line Main Street in Downtown Lexington along with banners on the Legacy Trail.
See a full list of events.