Celebrating Juneteenth at the Black Hills Community Theatre | News [Video]

RAPID CITY, S.D. – Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, the date when the last enslaved people were freed in the United States.

To honor this event, the Ellsworth African American Heritage Committee and the Black Hills Community Theatre (BHCT) hosted their second annual Juneteenth celebration at the historic theater in Rapid City.

The event featured a barbecue, presentations, a talent show, live music and various activities aimed at fostering education and community spirit.

Joshua Womble, President of the Ellsworth African-American Heritage Committee, emphasized the importance of the celebration.

“It gives us a chance to kind of bring people together, explain ourselves while we’re building camaraderie with the Rapid City community,” he said. “Most people don’t know what it is. They just know it’s a federal holiday now. So, this is a chance for us to explain [the holiday] and then broaden the message that we have.”

The event saw a …