NBC4 is pleased to support the second annual Juneteenth in LA Parade as the exclusive media sponsor, building on a local movement to honor Black independence and celebrate the community’s many achievements.
This year’s event took place on Saturday, June 19 with vehicles lined up starting at 11:30 a.m. at Inglewood High School. The parade kicked off at 1:00 p.m., cruising through predominantly Black neighborhoods and small businesses in South Los Angeles and culminating in a celebration at Leimert Park.
NBC4 news talent including Meteorologist Melissa Magee, Today in LA Traffic Anchor Robin Winston, Anchor and Reporter Michelle Valles and Today in LA Reporter Toni Guinyard participated and engaged with the community, including riding in a convertible greeting spectators.
Get top local stories in Southern California delivered to you every morning. >Sign up for NBC LA's News Headlines newsletter.
Last year, NBC4 joined the parade as the event organizers made history in Los Angeles coordinating the first event of its kind observing this important holiday.
NBC4 in the Community
Juneteenth (short for June Nineteenth) is the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States. On June 19, 1865, enslaved African Americans in Galveston, Texas, were informed of their freedom and that the Civil War had ended. The announcement put into effect the Emancipation Proclamation, which was issued more than two years earlier on Jan. 1, 1863, by President Abraham Lincoln.
To learn more about the Juneteenth parade and to register a vehicle in the parade, go to juneteenthinla.com.
To learn more about the significance of the holiday, visit Juneteenth.com and the National Museum of African American History and Culture.