.jpg)
Juneteenth celebrations are once again planned in Lexington and Glasgow this year.
The annual event in Lexington will be held at Richardson Park on Saturday, from 4 to 9 p.m.
Activities there include a talent show, basketball tournament, food trucks, vendors, face painting and glitter tattoos, along with live music from 7:30 to 9 p.m. by Apple Butter Soul.
The Lexington event is sponsored by the Rockbridge Regional Tourism Board, the Community Foundation for Rockbridge, Bath and Alleghany Counties and Washington and Lee University.
In Glasgow, meanwhile, two days of activities are planned, all at the town’s Thompson Community Center at 207 Catawba St.
Friday evening, events in the auditorium feature a free 8 p.m. screening of the Academy Award-winning movie “Green Book,” along with popcorn and movie concessions. The civil-rights-themed film will be preceded by a 7 p.m. slideshow presentation titled, “Beyond The Green Book: Navigating Jim Crow in Rockbridge.”
In the presentation, Rockbridge Historical Society Executive Director Eric Wilson will illustrate a wider network of social and commercial resources beyond local and national listings in that important mid-20th-century guide for African American travelers during the later decades of Jim Crow. Drawing from a longer research project, and interviews with neighboring families and descendants, Wilson’s narrative highlights other local Black businesses that operated around Natural Bridge and across Rockbridge.
On Saturday afternoon and evening, a variety of activities have been arranged to engage children and adults alike. Beginning outside with an opening ceremony at 2 p.m., music, family games, and a cultural program will echo the spirited gathering from last year, when the James E. Thompson Sr. Center was dedicated to its former principal and community leader.
After the afternoon’s activities, a history trivia game with prizes, starting at 7, will spotlight African American histories suited to the holiday, including some questions drawing from Friday’s film and history presentation. A children’s film and concessions will follow, to close the holiday fun.
