Dear Members of the Kent State University Community,
It has been a full year since June 19 was established as Juneteenth National Independence Day, a federal holiday commemorating the end of slavery in the United States.
In honor of the federal holiday, Kent State offices will be closed and no classes will be held on Monday, June 20.
Juneteenth celebrates the courage and perseverance of Black Americans at the end of slavery in the United States and marks the day when the news of emancipation reached enslaved Black Americans in Texas.
To commemorate the holiday, I encourage the campus community to attend Kent State’s Juneteenth Jubilee on Saturday, June 18, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Manchester Field on the Kent Campus. This event is free and open to the public.
The Juneteenth Jubilee will include vendors, live performances, face painting, head wrapping demonstration, music and dancing. It will also feature a showcase of Black business owners in the community.
The university intends to make the Juneteenth Jubilee an annual event.
I invite students, faculty and staff to join me in making Juneteenth an opportunity for all of us to acknowledge the history of our nation, honor Black lives and the legacy of the Black American experience, and reflect on the impact of slavery and the struggle for racial equity.
As a university, we strive for equity and belonging, not just on holidays, but every day of the year, as we work toward realizing the inalienable rights that were promised to all Americans at the founding of this country.
I hope to see you at the Juneteenth Jubilee.
Sincerely,
Todd Diacon
President