An important day across America, Juneteenth marks the end of formalized enslavement in the county.
The city of Brookings will have food, art and music to mark the anniversary of emancipation.
The event is sponsored by the Brookings Human Rights Commission. Dianne Nagy is the chair of the commission.
“Annual celebrations are really important because they give us an opportunity to acknowledge our collective history, reflect on how the past has shaped our present, think about what we want to do in the future to acknowledge and celebrate the progress we’ve seen thus far, and also really celebrate our diversity and the richness that gives our community,” Nagy said.
Nagy said the community hopes to bring that history to life.
“The mayor is going to make a proclamation, we’re going to have a reenactment of Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, and the president of the Sioux Falls NAACP chapter will also be sharing some reflections with us,” Nagy said
However, Nagy said it will be the music that punctuates this event.
“Participatory drumming with everybody there, there’s going to be singing, and we’re going to have a nine-piece brass band playing New Orleans-style jazz," Nagy said.
That’s going to be a collaboration between musicians from Brookings and Sioux Falls.”
The celebration will be held at Pioneer Park from 5 to 8 p.m. Wednesday night.