Nassau County Legislature Minority Leader Kevan M. Abrahams (D – Freeport) and Legislators Siela A. Bynoe (D – Westbury) and Carrié Solages (D – Lawrence) are partnering with Town of North Hempstead Councilman Robert J. Troiano, the Joysetta & Julius Pearse African American Museum of Nassau County, the Nassau Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. and the Nassau County Guardians Association Inc. to present a Juneteenth celebration at the Clark Botanic Garden in Albertson on Saturday, June 17.

The event will feature food and vendors, musical and dance performances, and a special Kids Corner, sponsored by Glory House Recovery, Inc. and Bethpage Federal Credit Union as part of the afternoon’s festivities.

Juneteenth is the oldest known celebration commemorating the end of slavery in the United States. It specifically refers to the June 19, 1865 issuance of Union General Gordon Granger’s “General Order No. 3,” which brought news of President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation to the people of Texas in these words:

“The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free,” the order reads in part. “This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves…”