Juneteenth Ceremony Set For Friday In Redwood City

REDWOOD CITY, CA — San Mateo County community leaders will host a Juneteenth ceremony on Friday in Redwood City.

The event, which will take place at the County Center, will feature a flag raising, the singing of the Black national anthem and several speakers.

The ceremony begins a month of events to celebrate Juneteenth, which officially falls on June 19, the day in 1864 when enslaved people in Texas learned that they were free following the Civil War.

San Mateo County is raising the Juneteenth Flag early because it hopes to take more time to educate the public about the importance of the holiday.

“Juneteenth is a time for all of us to reflect upon and to recognize our country’s tragic legacy of slavery and racism,” said Don Horsley, president of the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors. “It’s also a time for us to come together as a community to take action to progress the causes of equality and justice.”

Marie Davis, the former local chapter president of the NAACP, will sing the Black national anthem, and speakers will include Rev. Lorrie Owens of the San Mateo NAACP; Rose Jacob Gibson, the honorary chair of the 2022 Juneteenth Celebration; and San Mateo County Supervisors Horsley and Carole Groom.

“Juneteenth is a day to recommit ourselves to equity, equality, and justice for all,” Groom said.

The flag-raising ceremony is scheduled for 9 a.m. on Friday at the courtyard in 400 County Center. It will also be livestreamed on the county’s Facebook page.

The county will also host hour-long webinars throughout the month on Juneteenth. Click here for more information.