Juneteenth Background

The Juneteenth National Holiday celebrations commemorate June 19, 1865, when Union General Gordon Granger announced in Galveston, Texas that all slaves had been freed by proclamation of President Abraham Lincoln. It came more than two-and-a-half years after the Emancipation Proclamation, signed on September 22, 1862.

The City of Donaldsonville and the festival committee have carried on this tradition locally since its inception in 1996. Started by former Donaldsonville Mayor B.J. Francis Sr. and his late wife, Janet Ganes Francis, it was continued through the efforts of the River Road African American Museum and other volunteers in the community.

From 2011 - 2021, Tamiko Francis Garrison, Allison Hudson, and the City of Donaldsonville served as the planning committee for the festival.  In 2022, the City of Donaldsonville was excited to announce that in 2022 Generation Z assumed control. The committee members are Tamiko Stroud and Skye Taylor.  This year, continuing on the Francis Family tradition, Tamiko Stroud and Tamiko Garrison will be at the helm. The family-oriented festival is free and open to the public. Bring a chair and umbrella.  We will continue this with this celebration with Rain or Shine!