Last year, more than 25,000 people celebrated Juneteenth in downtown Colorado Springs.

That number suggests to Southern Colorado Juneteenth Festival co-organizer Jennifer Smith that people are much more aware of the federal holiday.

On June 19, 1865 (shortened to Juneteenth), federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, to free more than 250,000 enslaved Black people. It was two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation, which declared enslaved people in Confederate states to be free. Galveston was the last town in the nation to receive the news.

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“They care now. Some people didn’t even care,” said Smith, co-founder and director of OneBodyEnt, the nonprofit behind the festival. “I grew up in Louisiana. That’s what you did. Coming from the South you know better. When you know better, you do better.”

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This year’s free, three-day festival kicks off Friday in America the Beautiful Park. Friday’s events include a talent show and boxing match presented by Santiago’s Boxing Club. Saturday features a UCHealth Fair, hair braiding, Double Dutch and new style hip-hop competitions, Poetry 719 and headliner Fabolous, a rapper famous in the late ’90s and early 2000s. His hits include “Young’n (Holla Back),” “Make Me Better” and “Throw it in the Bag.”

“He is a lovey-dovey rapper. He raps about love and relationships,” Smith said. “He’s old school at the same time, he’s still relevant.”

Sunday’s lineup includes Urban Classic Presents: Olympic City Sound Showcase, a Father’s Day tribute, an Emancipation Proclamation ceremony and jazz and R&B music by Tony Exum Jr.’s Rhythm N Smooth Experience featuring singer-songwriters Donell Jones, Adina Howard and Tiger Chazz.

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Before the festival, which started three years ago, there were multiple, smaller Juneteenth celebrations around the Pikes Peak region. Smith and her husband, OneBodyEnt co-founder and executive director DeAndre Smith, wanted to bring everyone together into one big event to celebrate the holiday.

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“It’s not just for Black people, it’s for everybody. It’s everybody’s history. We wanted to give everyone a platform,” Jennifer said.

“We’re here because people don’t know (about the holiday). It’s not a big thing because there’s not enough of us here, but it’s so important to make it happen.”

Contact the writer: 636-0270