ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Fundraising Proceeds
Proceeds from the 2021 Juneteenth Celebration will support local arts and cultural programming. Scholarship opportunities will also be provided for qualified applicants to pursue arts and culture education. Parties interested in sponsorship and/or planning future Juneteenth Events are encouraged to visit TAACF.com to submit credentials.
HISTORY OF JUNETEENTH
On June 19th, 1865, General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston Texas, to inform the slaves there that more than two and a half years prior, President Lincoln had signed the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing them from the bondage of slavery. That was the first Juneteenth. The commemoration of that date was officially celebrated a year later on June 19, 1866.
On September 10, 2020, New Jersey Governor Phil D. Murphy signed legislation designating the third Friday in June as a State and public holiday, known as Juneteenth Day.
MORE ABOUT THE COLLABORATIVE
The Trenton African American Cultural Festival organization, which started in 2014, led to the creation of an even larger, more inclusive entity to serve the residents of Mercer County and beyond. In the spring of 2016, the Trenton African American Cultural Festival organization, along with community-based support and sponsorship evolved into the African American Cultural Collaborative of Mercer County (AACCofMC). As serendipity would have it, on June 19, 2017 the AACCofMC was recognized as a non-profit and granted 501(c)(3) status by the federal government.