Juneteenth is recognized and celebrated around the world.

Juneteenth has always been a day intended for the celebration of freedom. Today, it is more than just a celebration; it is a time of reflection. It gives us the space to learn more about the significance of this important day and to have conversations with people who come from different backgrounds and experiences. It can be a step toward reconciliation and healing as we strive to achieve racial equality and justice in our world.

Therefore, as the United States marks only the second federally recognized Juneteenth, Black Americans living overseas have embraced the holiday as a day of reflection and an opportunity to educate people in their host countries on Black history. In Liberia, Saqar Ahhah Ahershu, originally from Jersey City, N.J., organized the country’s first “Journey Home Festival” in 2022. “Because this is part of that hidden African American history that still hasn’t been completely unpacked,” he said in Monrovia. Tashina Ferguson, a 26-year-old debate coach, also celebrated Juneteenth with a group of drag performers at a fundraising brunch for the Marsha P. Johnson Institute in Korea. LaTonya Whitaker, from Mississippi, has lived in Japan for 17 years and also is executive director of Legacy Foundation Japan, which hosted a Juneteenth gathering of about 300 people at the ritzy Tokyo American Club.

And many other African American living around the world are putting efforts to celebrate Juneteenth as a day of freedom, pray for justice and against racism, and strive to make a difference right where they are.