With today’s fifth official state observance of Juneteenth, a Colorado holiday signed into law by Gov. Jared Polis in 2022, Coloradans can come together in a celebration of realized freedom.

Just under two weeks before the nation celebrates its 250th birthday, and Colorado celebrates its 150th anniversary of statehood, Juneteenth reminds us of fortitude. It’s the courage of Black Americans to fight for God-given rights. It’s the righteousness of non-Black Americans who worked against bigotry to fully bring a once-enslaved and long-discriminated-against people into actualization of what it means to pursue happiness.

Juneteenth, first celebrated in Colorado in 1953, in Denver’s Five Points neighborhood, is also known as Emancipation Day. It commemorates June 19, 1865, when Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger declared slavery’s end in Texas — more than two years after Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation — finally reaching areas such as Texas, Delaware and Kentucky.

Denver’s annual parade and festival is ever-growing in strength, with tens of thousands of attendees. Colorado Springs’ celebration is evolving, with the annual Southern Colorado Juneteenth Festival this weekend moving from an outdoor site at The Citadel mall to Norris Penrose Event Center.

The move in the Springs should help to better celebrate the holiday, said event organizer Jennifer Smith. Last year’s move from America the Beautiful Park to The Citadel led to a drop in attendance but still drew 22,000. Smith said this week organizers won’t give up.

“We want people to know it’s important,” Smith told the Gazette.

“It’s not just about Black people being free,” she added. “It’s about everybody being free.”

As Smith put it, Juneteenth is “about freedom,” and there’s a responsibility to share your freedom and to “to celebrate where you came from.”

Although Black Coloradans comprise a modest 4.2% of the state’s population, there is a long list of Black Coloradans who have improved all Coloradans’ lives at scale — including Donna Auguste, Rose Andom, Justina Ford, Ruth Cousins Denny, John R. Henderson Jr. and Elvin Caldwell.

To celebrate in the Springs, the more than 60 vendors at the free event Saturday and Sunday will include 25 health fair vendors. Musical performances will be featured, and kids can play in bounce houses, get their faces painted and do arts and crafts. There’s also a Juneteenth Fashion Show and car, truck and motorcycle show. Another event will take place Friday by Concrete Couch, from 4-8 p.m. at Concrete Coyote Park.

In Denver, the Juneteenth Parade is from 11 a.m. to noon Saturday on 26th Street from Williams to Welton. The 15th annual Juneteenth Music Festival will follow from noon to 8 p.m. at 2700 Welton St. And on Sunday, there will be a Juneteenth Hop event featuring live performances at local bars, breweries and cultural spaces along Welton.

In Aurora, the city’s Juneteenth Celebration will be from 2-6 p.m. Sunday at Town Center at Aurora. It will feature free, family-friendly events, including live music, R&B performances, inspiring speakers, games, activities and local vendor and community booths.