The origin of the Juneteenth celebrations marking the end of slavery in the U.S. goes back to an order issued as Union troops arrived in Texas at the end of the Civil War.

2024 marks the 4th Juneteenth Day of Observance. It celebrates when freedom finally came to the over 250,000 enslaved people in Texas on June 19, 1865.

Juneteenth, a federal holiday since June 2021, will be commemorated on Wednesday, June 19.

Events throughout South Florida celebrate the United States' newest federal holiday.

The United States government is catching up with Black people who have been commemorating the end of slavery in the United States for generations with a day called “Juneteenth.”.

Rhonda Thomas, of the New Generation Baptist Church in Opa-locka, said Fridays Juneteenth will be marked with public memorial services and marches in South Florida. Juneteenth, a nationwide event, is also known as Freedom Day, Jubilee Day, Cel-Liberation Day and the Black Fourth of July. Yates (L) and his sister Daijha Yates, members of Child of God, sing during the Juneteenth, Black Independence Day celebrations at Nichol Park on June 19, 2004 in Richmond, California. Here is the list of events in South Florida:Broward County: 6:15 p.m. at Ingalls Park, 735 SW First St., in Hallandale Beach. South Miami-Dade: 12 p.m. at Second Baptist Church, 11111 Pinkston St., in Richmond Heights.

Although slavery was already abolished more than two years earlier by the Emancipation Proclamation, it continued in some areas. Some businesses have professed support for the Black Lives Matter movement or pledged to donate money to organizations. Others have promised to hire more black workers or make other policy changes. This week, Nike CEO John Donahoe told workers they would get Juneteenth off starting this year as a way to celebrate black culture and history. The power of this historical feat in our countrys blemished history is felt each year," Goodell wrote in a memo.