Juneteenth Santa Barbara is an annual event, where we bring community members together to celebrate the freedom of enslaved people in the United States. Two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed, enslaved people in Galveston, welcomed the Union Army’s declaration of freedom and immediately danced in the streets. It was not simply a joyous celebration; African Americans continued to face anti-Blackness in various forms including lynching, Jim Crow segretation, sundowner towns (racial segregation via discriminitory laws, intimidation, and violence), as well as a disconnection from family and ancestral historory (many Black / African American people still cannot trace their ancestry). Today, we honor our ancestors and celebrate our freedom, showcasing Black / African American joy and culture in Santa Barbara, California.