West Sacramento to host 4th annual Juneteenth celebration
WE’RE GOING TO TOSS IT OVER TO YOU, MIKE. THANK YOU. WE’RE GOING TO SWITCH GEARS JUST A LITTLE BIT HERE AND TALK ABOUT A BIG EVENT HAPPENING TODAY, THE FOURTH ANNUAL JUNETEENTH CELEBRATION FOR THE CITY OF WEST SACRAMENTO HAPPENS FROM 530 TO 830 TONIGHT. AND THIS MORNING, WE WELCOME DISTRICT THREE COUNCIL MEMBER DOCTOR DANTE EARLY. GOOD MORNING. THANKS FOR BEING HERE. GOOD MORNING. THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME. THIS IS A HUGE EVENT THAT I KNOW HAS BEEN IN THE WORKS FOR FOR MANY MONTHS. TALK ABOUT HOW THIS CAME ABOUT. IT’S THE FOURTH ANNUAL. BUT HOW DID THE IDEA START? WELL, SO A FEW YEARS AGO, MY SECOND YEAR ON COUNCIL. FOR YEARS I’VE BEEN ATTENDING JUNETEENTH EVENTS THROUGHOUT OUR REGION. WE HAVE A WONDERFUL, DIVERSE REGION. AND I SAID TO COUNCIL MEMBER, I WAS LIKE, WOULDN’T IT BE GREAT IF WE ACTUALLY JUST HAD OUR OWN AND WE COULD CELEBRATE TOGETHER IN WEST SAC? SHE WAS LIKE, IT SURE WOULD. AND SO WE ROLLED UP OUR SLEEVES THAT FIRST YEAR AND WE JUST WE DID IT OURSELVES AND WE THOUGHT, COULD WE MAYBE GET 50 PEOPLE? AND WE ENDED UP GETTING OVER 100. AND THEN THE NEXT YEAR, THE CITY TOOK IT OVER AND IT’S JUST CONTINUED TO BLOSSOM. I LOVE THAT. SO I DO WANT TO ASK THIS TO SO WE KNOW THAT JUNETEENTH IS JUNE 19TH, RIGHT? BUT SO THIS EVENT IS HAPPENING TODAY. WHY NOT ON THE JUNETEENTH WEEKEND? OH, THAT’S A GREAT QUESTION. SO WHAT WE FOUND IS WE WANTED ALL OF OUR COMMUNITY TO BE ABLE TO CELEBRATE THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE REGION. AND SO WE TEND TO HAVE OURS A LITTLE BIT EARLY, WHICH ALLOWS FOR PEOPLE TO ENJOY SEVERAL JUNETEENTH EVENTS THROUGHOUT THE SACRAMENTO REGION. YEAH. OKAY. SO TELL, TELL ME A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE HISTORY OF JUNETEENTH AND HOW THIS EVENT PLAYS INTO THAT. ABSOLUTELY. SO ON JUNE 19TH, 1865, WE HAD THE ANNOUNCEMENT IN TEXAS, RIGHT? TWO YEARS AFTER THE EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION THAT BLACK AMERICANS WERE FINALLY FREE. AND SO AGAIN, IT WAS TWO YEARS AFTER THAT IT FINALLY REACHED TEXAS. AND THOSE ENSLAVED BLACK AMERICANS FOUND OUT THAT THEY WERE NO LONGER SLAVES AND COULD GO FREE. AND SO WE CELEBRATE THIS BECAUSE WE RECOGNIZE FREEDOM. WE RECOGNIZE HOW FAR WE’VE COME, BUT WE ALSO RECOGNIZE HOW MUCH MORE THERE IS THAT NEEDS TO BE DONE. OKAY. WHAT CAN PEOPLE EXPECT TONIGHT? OKAY, SO YOU’RE GOING TO GET MUSIC, YOU’RE GOING TO GET FOOD, YOU GET FREE FOOD, RIGHT? SO WE HAVE GREAT FOOD TRUCKS. THE FIRST 100 FOLKS THAT SHOW UP GET FREE FOOD VOUCHER. WE HAVE OUR LOCAL HIGH SCHOOL JAZZ BAND COMING. WE HAVE A STOMP TEAM AND ALL OF THE THINGS. IT REALLY IS A BEAUTIFUL EVENT. WE HAVE THE SPLASH PAD OPEN FOR THE HEAT. ABSOLUTELY. THE HEAT MATTERS. YOU KNOW, WE’LL BE BRINGING OUR FAMILIES OUT. AND SO IT’S JUST A WONDERFUL TIME TO BE ABLE TO RUN AROUND, CELEBRATE COMMON COMMUNITY. AND ACTUALLY, IT’S THE PART I LOVE ABOUT WEST SACRAMENTO, RIGHT? WHICH IS WE DON’T JUST LIVE NEXT TO EACH OTHER. WE LIKE TO CELEBRATE EACH OTHER AS WELL. AND YOU TOLD ME THIS IS GOING TO BE YOUR LAST JUNETEENTH, MY LAST YEAR AS A COUNCIL MEMBER. OH MY GOODNESS. AND SO I WON’T BE RUNNING FOR REELECTION. WAIT, YOU’RE BREAKING NEWS THIS MORNING. OKAY, SO THIS IS NEW. THIS IS OFFICIAL. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. WE’RE HEARING IT HERE FIRST. OKAY, OKAY. I KNOW I WON’T BE. AS YOU KNOW, MY GRANDSON IS GOING TO BE BORN SOON. AND THEN YOU ALSO KNOW MY DAY JOB, UNITED WAY. WE HAVE A LOT HAPPENING IN THE NONPROFIT WORLD THAT I’M VERY EXCITED ABOUT. AND SO THIS THIS WILL BE MY LAST ONE AS A COUNCIL MEMBER, AS A COUNCIL MEMBER. BUT YOU’LL STILL BE IN WEST SACRAMENTO, OF COURSE, AND BE AROUND. AND SO FOLKS WILL STILL BE ABLE TO SEE YOU. MY CITY, I LOVE, I LOVE OUR CITY. I’M VERY PROUD OF US AND I’M PROUD OF DISTRICT THREE AND, AND WHAT I’VE BEEN ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH. WELL, THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE THIS MORNING. AND HERE IS THE INFORMATION O
West Sacramento to host 4th annual Juneteenth celebration
Updated: 12:47 PM PDT Jun 12, 2026
The City of West Sacramento will host its 4th Annual Juneteenth Celebration on Friday from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at Bridgeway Lake Community Park.The free event will feature live music, performances, art, raffle prizes, food trucks, and family-friendly activities honoring Juneteenth, which commemorates the end of slavery in the United States.Performers include Jahri’s World, Tina B. & Sacramento Soul Line Dancers, C.I.E. — Confidence is Everything Stomp & Shake, and the Fortune Panthers Marching Band. Live art by Danitta Nelson will also be featured.The first 200 attendees will receive a $10 food truck voucher and a tote bag. Free Via rideshare service will be available.For more information, visit WestSacFun.org.West Sacramento District 3 Councilmember Dr. Dawntè Early joined KCRA 3 on Friday to discuss the event.Click the video above to watch the full interview.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. —
The City of West Sacramento will host its 4th Annual Juneteenth Celebration on Friday from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at Bridgeway Lake Community Park.
The free event will feature live music, performances, art, raffle prizes, food trucks, and family-friendly activities honoring Juneteenth, which commemorates the end of slavery in the United States.
Performers include Jahri’s World, Tina B. & Sacramento Soul Line Dancers, C.I.E. — Confidence is Everything Stomp & Shake, and the Fortune Panthers Marching Band.
Live art by Danitta Nelson will also be featured.
The first 200 attendees will receive a $10 food truck voucher and a tote bag.
Free Via rideshare service will be available.
For more information, visit WestSacFun.org.
West Sacramento District 3 Councilmember Dr. Dawntè Early joined KCRA 3 on Friday to discuss the event.
Click the video above to watch the full interview.