Join us for a Juneteenth Lunch and Learn Celebration!

On Tuesday June 18th, 2024, Language Pedagogy Specialist Déja Motley will lead a Juneteenth “Lunch and Learn” event in Cobb Hall! The event will start at 10:45am and finish around 2:00pm.

We will begin with a presentation and discussion about Juneteenth and the history of Black Americans. Then, we will explore the meaning of freedom by creating paintings with Afro aesthetics. Finally, we will enjoy a delicious lunch of traditional Black American Soul Food. The event and lunch is entirely free! There will be no cost to you.

As you may know, Chicago is central to Black history and Black culture, and the University of Chicago’s history is tied to slavery in the United States. As a UChicago instructor, ELI Specialist, and Chicago native, Déja is excited to introduce her legacy and this important facet of US history to you.

To provide more historical context, Juneteenth is a US holiday celebrating the end of slavery. During the American Civil War, the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation ended slavery in rebelling states. However, it took two and a half years for this news to reach all enslaved people in the South. In June of 1865, the enslaved people of Galveston, Texas finally received the news that slavery was over after hundreds of years, and they were free. Since then, Black American communities have commemorated Juneteenth as a celebration of their ancestors’ resilience and triumphs. Learn more about Juneteenth here.