Celebration, Inspiration, Information and Sale of Afro-Centric Goods & Food

From Noon until 5 PM

At AAHMSNJ Atlantic City (Noyes Arts Garage of Stockton University)

2200 Fairmount Avenue, Atlantic City, NJ 08401

Admission is free. Donations are encouraged.

The African American Heritage Museum of Southern New Jersey (AAHMSNJ) will celebrate Juneteenth, also known as Emancipation Day, on June 19 in commemoration of the ending of chattel slavery in the United States. The festivities — which will include many activities focused on the history and significance of Juneteenth — will take place Thursday, June 19th from noon to 5 PM at AAHMSNJ in the Noyes Arts Garage at 2200 Fairmount Avenue in Atlantic City. Artwork, Afro-centric goods by vendors as well as soul food will be available for sale.

On June 19, 1865, words of freedom reached the enslaved in Galveston, Texas announcing their emancipation, even though they had been freed on January 1, 1863. With that word came a change in our nation and the larger world. Every American who believes in freedom has cause to celebrate the formal end of slavery in the United States by observing Juneteenth.

New Jersey, quite notably, was hesitant to abolish slavery — which earned it the ignominious designation of being the last Northern state to ratify the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. New Jersey was also the location of several Northern textile mills the profited from the slave trade by turning Southern cotton into cloth and other textile products.

A local story about the end of slavery features Lucy Harris-Jackson, the last person recorded by the US Census Bureau as a slave in South Jersey. Researched and curated by Robert Barnett, an exhibition about Lucy was launched by the museum in 2022. It features primary sources documenting Lucy’s role as an enslaved person in this area and gives visitors a real-life view of Lucy’s chest from the mid-1800s. Donated to the museum by a descendant of the family that enslaved Lucy, the wood-working chest was passed down for generations and remains a testament connecting Lucy’s past to our present. The exhibit, including the chest and its tools, will be on display at the Juneteenth Bazaar.

The history of the federal holiday will be presented by featured speaker Dr. Donnetrice Allison, Associate Professor of Communication Studies and Africana Studies at Stockton University. A Juneteenth exhibition curated by Guivanchiali Saint Jean and Rachel Dunlap, students from Stockton University who intern with the museum, will be on display along with a video explaining how the holiday came to be.

In addition, works will be on display by featured artist Quinton Greene, a prolific, self-taught painter and mixed media artist from South Jersey whose colorful artwork has often been exhibited at AAHMSNJ, and Samake Fousseyni, an art dealer who will display more than 100 hand-carved African sculptures from Sierra Leone, West Africa. The artwork and sculptures will be available for purchase.

Many others from the Atlantic City community will participate in commemorating Juneteeth. A prayer from Dr. Thelma Witherspoon of Westminister Christian Worship and remarks from our esteemed 3rd Ward Councilman, Kaleem Shabazz, will open the festivities. Christina Noble, Director of Youth Services for the City of Atlantic City, will guide the afternoon as our Mistress of Ceremonies. The day's line-up also includes music by the Tony Day Trio, stories by local storyteller Michelle Washington Wilson, a libation ceremony by Dr. Kimoni Yaw Ajani, Assistant Professor of Africana Studies at Stockton University, and African drumming by Big Jeff. 

Thank you sponsor
Casino Reinvestment Development Authority