Commemorate Juneteenth and support the ongoing movement for Black lives, liberation, joy, and imagination on this special day of art and community.

This year, the Boston Ujima Project and ICA/Boston have partnered to bring you We Create the World: A Juneteenth Celebration, a day packed with excitement, including films, music, and activities that highlight the Black experience.

Featuring: 

  • Musical performances by Legacy Thorton and jhe 
  • DJ sets by DJ Rayvino and Chris Grant 
  • Reiki sessions 
  • Healing sound bath experience 
  • Local artisan vendors 
  • Refreshments from Yamacu Ginger Drinks and Cupcake Therapy
  • Premiere of short film program curated by the Roxbury International Film Festival* 
  • Short films curated by the Boston Ujima project* 
  • Screening of experimental archival docuseries by Cidjud (CJ) Felix* 
  • Free admission to exhibitions on view, including Simone Leigh*

*requires free museum admission ticket

Outdoor programming is free to all and appropriate for all ages; tickets not required.

Free tickets are required for museum admission and will be available to reserve beginning on Sunday, June 18 at 10 AM.

Free, timed tickets are required for the ICA Water Shuttle, bringing visitors to the ICA Watershed, and tickets will be available on Sunday, June 18 at 10 AM. Admission to Guadalupe Maravilla: Mariposa Relámpago at the Watershed in East Boston is always FREE—tickets are not required for entrance.

 

Other ways to celebrate Juneteenth in Boston

Join the Boston Ujima Project at Black Market in Roxbury’s Nubian Square for a unique opportunity to have your tintype portrait taken by renowned photographer Adam Davis at the Black Magic installation.

Visit these Boston arts institutions, free and open on Juneteenth:

From June 14-16, discover a series of unique events at the Embrace Ideas Festival. Tickets required.

About the Boston Ujima Project

The Boston Ujima Project is a Black-led democratic organization building a cooperative business, arts and investment ecosystem in Boston, with a mission to return wealth to working-class communities of color. Ujima is bringing together neighbors, workers, business owners, investors, grassroots organizers, and culture-makers, to create a community-controlled economy in our city. Learn more

About Juneteenth

Juneteenth marks the historic day of June 19, 1865, when Union General Gordon Granger read federal orders declaring freedom for all previously enslaved people in Texas—more than two years after President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. Through grassroots efforts, Black people in Texas reclaimed June 19 from a day of unheeded military orders as the first celebration of “Juneteenth” a year later in 1866, and it continues as a celebration of Black liberation across the country. It’s a day of remembrance, resilience, and joy as Black communities come together to honor their history and continue the fight for liberation. To learn more, see “What Is Juneteenth?” by Henry Louis Gates, Jr.