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MFA Community Celebration: Juneteenth

  • Facebook and YouTube (map)

This year, we are taking our eighth annual Juneteenth event online to honor the contributions of Black creatives, scholars and artists to the City of Boston. Juneteenth is the oldest nationally observed commemoration of the ending of slavery in the U.S. We wish to commemorate this day with joy and resolve as we strive for justice and liberty in the continued fight for equity.

The event, streamed on Facebook and YouTube, will feature:

• The City Talks: Juneteenth Every Day, a panel discussion moderated by Makeeba McCreary, Patti and Jonathan Kraft Chief of Learning and Community Engagement, and featuring artist Rob "Problak" Gibbs, The Boston Globe columnist Adrian Walker, and trillfit CEO Heather White

• Storytime with artist and children's book illustrator Ekua Holmes, who will read "Black Is a Rainbow Color" by Angela Joy

• Art making led by artist and educator Chanel Thervil and inspired by Roberto Lugo's "Law and Order: The Reincarnation of Frederick Douglass" (2017) from the MFA's collection

• Spotlight Talk with artist Roberto Lugo, moderated by Michelle Millar Fisher, Ronald C. and Anita L. Wornick Curator of Contemporary Decorative Arts

• Recitations of speeches, poems and song lyrics by participants in the MFA's teen programs

• Performance by Débo Ray and DJ Where's Nasty, curated by BAMS Fest

Sponsored by @Chase. The City Talks is presented with support from the Dori H. Rahbar and Cameron R. Rahbar Fund.