The sixth annual Salt Lake Juneteenth Festival returned to The Gateway on June 19. This is the second-largest Juneteenth event in the state of Utah, welcoming thousands of community members every year.

Juneteenth celebrates June 19, 1865, the day Union soldiers freed enslaved African Americans in Galveston and other regions of Texas, after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation back on Jan. 1, 1863.

The Utah State Legislature first approved Juneteenth as a holiday observance in 2016. Former President Joe Biden signed Juneteenth into federal law in 2021. Utah became the 10th state to officially make Juneteenth a state holiday in 2022.

Rep. Sandra Hollins, who is the first Black woman to serve in the Utah House of Representatives, sponsored the bill that would allow Juneteenth to be made a state holiday. Hollins also pushed for the day to be made a holiday observance in 2016.

Celebrations began early Friday morning with a community gathering and program at the Utah State Capitol, followed by the festival at The Gateway.

“The turnout has been fantastic,” Olivia Nightingale said, a local author and small-business owner.

The festival featured live entertainment, children’s activities and a black-owned business expo that hosted small businesses and artists across Utah.

The Salt Lake Juneteenth celebration provided many Black-owned small businesses opportunities to reach new customers and connect with the community.

“I’ve done a lot of promotion on social media and many people have come up to me said ‘I saw this TikTok, I saw the Instagram,’ and so the foot traffic has been absolutely amazing,” Nightingale said.

Some festivalgoers said this year’s festival felt different from previous years. Among those was Kimberly Okora, who has participated in multiple Salt Lake Juneteenth festivals.

“I think we’re realizing how important it is for us to embrace our cultures and talk to each other and support each other,” Okora said. “And I kind of feel like that’s what’s happening this year.”

She said that the political climate motivates her to find community gatherings in hopes of supporting others.

The Salt Lake Juneteenth Festival relies on donations, sponsors and volunteers. Community support is essential to the success of the festival each year and the success of the participating vendors.

“Last year, it seemed to just be a festival,” Okora said. “But this year it really feels like a community event.”