Members of the Elon University community are invited to commemorate Juneteenth with an in-person or virtual walking tour honoring this significant federal holiday and exploring lesser-known histories of the Black community at Elon.
Juneteenth, a federal holiday observed each year on June 19, commemorates the day in 1865 when enslaved African Americans in Galveston, Texas, learned they were free, more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation.
In recognition of Juneteenth, Elon University has organized programs for students, faculty, staff, and community members, including a self-guided walking tour that highlights locations on campus marked with informational signs offering historical context.
Signs at each location feature a QR code linking to a webpage with expanded details about the site. Additional information is available through a collection organized by Elon University’s Archives and Special Collections.
Organizers hope that through the tour experience, participants will gain insight into the lesser-known histories of Elon’s Black community. Those insights, they said, will foster reflection, education, and commemoration of the holiday’s significance.
“Our understanding of the historical and contemporary significance of Juneteenth helps us grow into a community that embraces shared responsibility to act deliberately toward equitable outcomes,” said Carla Fullwood, director of inclusive excellence education and development in the Division of Inclusive Excellence.
Juneteenth serves as both a celebration of emancipation and a solemn reminder of the long struggle for racial justice, Fullwood said, and that Elon University – as an institution committed to inclusive excellence – engages the community through events that reflect values of justice, critical inquiry, and shared humanity.
“Juneteenth is also a time to honestly reflect on our nation’s history of independence, recommit to the work of justice, and create space for both rest and joy,” she said.