The Juneteenth Celebration planned for Saturday in Diamond Park comes a few days after the actual Juneteenth holiday, which occurred Wednesday, but perhaps that’s appropriate.

From a practical perspective, the weekend timing probably means that more people can enjoy the event. While Wednesday was a holiday for many, Juneteenth only became a federal holiday in 2021 when President Joe Biden signed it into law the day before the first observance. Given its newness, the day still remains a regular workday for many.

From a symbolic perspective, the delay in celebrating the June 19 holiday also makes sense: The occasion commemorates the 1865 arrival of Union troops in Galveston, Texas, with news of the Emancipation Proclamation, which — unbeknownst to enslaved people in general and those in the far reaches of the Confederacy in particular — had been issued by President Abraham Lincoln more than two years earlier.

It’s not every day that a federal holiday is added to the calendar. Prior to the addition of Juneteenth, the last time it happened was 1983, when Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday became a holiday. The recognition of King came 15 years after Columbus Day was made a federal holiday.

“For people who are still getting used to the holiday, I would encourage them to educate themselves about what it is,” said Jackie Roberson, executive director of the Family & Community Christian Association, the nonprofit that is organizing Saturday’s event along with the Meadville chapter of the NAACP.

Though only recognized as a federal holiday a few years ago, Juneteenth celebrations have been taking place since 1866, especially among Black people in the South. A great way to learn about the spirit of those celebrations is to stop by Diamond Park on Saturday.

“The importance of this is for people to understand that we celebrate the freedom of enslaved people and we celebrate our heritage. We’re proud of our heritage and want our area to celebrate it,” Roberson said. “The ultimate goal is for our community to come together around food, fun and fellowship and just enjoy all that Meadville has to offer.”

The celebration will include music and dance with plenty of opportunities for visitors to become involved. In addition to an open mic portion of the performances, a jam session for community musicians will take place.

Deputy Mayor Larry McKnight was optimistic about seeing the younger generations represented at the event when he plugged it during his closing remarks at Meadville City Council’s Tuesday meeting.

“This weekend of course is the Juneteenth Celebration, but it’s Meadville celebrating, that’s the way I look at it because we are all one,” McKnight said. “I really would love to see some of the young kids from the high school music department come down because we’re having an open jam session and any musicians that are there are more than welcome to come.”

For Mark McGinty, much of the excitement of the day comes from the 3-on-3 basketball tournament he is organizing — the third such tournament he has hosted at Diamond Park since last year. After fielding 17 teams at the earlier events, McGinty expects more than 20 to play on temporary courts set up in front of the Crawford County Courthouse. Proceeds from the competition, which will have various age groups for players 12 and older, will support the free Celebration Meadville event in late August.

The Saturday afternoon event offers community members the chance to be part of something new, according to Mayor Jaime Kinder.

“It’s our first community Juneteenth with the whole community coming together to celebrate and remember the actual freedom of everybody in America,” Kinder said, as she spent Wednesday — the actual Juneteenth holiday — with family members as they prepared to celebrate an upcoming wedding.

For those looking to learn more about Black history in Meadville, Kinder said a good place to start is at Unitarian Universalist Church of Meadville. The church will host a symposium Friday at 6 p.m., she said, with speakers addressing topics including the history of Elias Allen’s efforts to enroll his children in a whites-only school in Meadville in 1880, which led to the desegregation of Pennsylvania’s public education system; the Unity Center, a daycare and teen center that thrived in the 1970s; and Armendia Dixon’s efforts to record Meadville’s black history.

“It’s a great time to be in Meadville and to be black,” Kinder said, “and to learn our history here.”

YOU CAN GO

The Meadville Juneteenth Celebration takes place Saturday from noon to 4 p.m. in Diamond Park. The free event will include vendors, kids’ activities, music and dance performances, an open mic performance period, authentic soul food, a community jam session and more. The Juneteenth Freedom Classic, a three-on-three basketball tournament open to players 12 and older, will take place in the park as well from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., with registration opening at 8:30. The entry fee for teams is $100. Proceeds from the tournament support the free Celebration Meadville event in late August. To register, contact Mark McGinty at (919) 464-1512.