President Joe Biden on Monday is set to mark Juneteenth with a concert on the White House South Lawn, three years after he declared June 19 the newest federal holiday.
Biden will welcome iconic artists Gladys Knight and Patti LaBelle to the White House for the event, which also coincides with Black Music Month.
Other performers expected to attend on Monday include comedian Roy Wood Jr. and musical artists Kirk Franklin, Doug E. Fresh, Anthony Hamilton, Patina Miller, Trombone Shorty, Charlie Wilson and Brittney Spencer, who was featured on Beyoncé's most recent album, “Cowboy Carter.”
Monday’s event marks the second time the Biden administration has celebrated the holiday with a concert. Last year’s lineup also included several well-known performers, including Jennifer Hudson.
Congress passed and Biden signed a bill in June 2021 establishing Juneteenth as the nation’s 12th federal holiday to commemorate the day in 1865 when Union troops descended on Galveston, Texas to bring the news that those enslaved were free.
Earlier on Monday, the White House brought together administration officials, artists, civil rights leaders and scholars for an event focused on how the federal government can protect and preserve African American history.
Biden, as well as Vice President Kamala Harris – the first Black woman to hold the position in the nation's history – have recently frequently warned of what they say is an attempt to “erase history.”
“And Black history is American history,” the president said during an event at the National Museum of African American History and Culture last month, amid a week of ramped up outreach to such communities from the Democratic president. The line was reiterated on a fact sheet from the White House on Monday.
Coinciding with Monday’s events, the White House also announced that the National Endowment for the Humanities is creating a program that will designate new funding across the country focused on efforts to teach and promote African American history. The money will go toward traveling museum exhibits, workshops, lectures and more in the leadup to the 160th anniversary of Juneteenth.
Meanwhile, the White House also noted that from June 18 to 20 this year, the National Archives Museum will display the original Emancipation Proclamation and General Order No. 3 and the National Park Service will allow free entrance to park service sites on June 19.
