IU had the day off for the Juneteenth holiday Wednesday.
The university recognized the holiday three years ago, a decision made by President Pamela Whitten. It celebrates the end of slavery in the United States.
Read more: IU, city mark Juneteenth with long weekend of events
This year, IU’s Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center hosted students and community members for an afternoon of games, dancing and lots of food.
“It's how we connect with each other. I look at Juneteenth like a big family reunion,” says Gloria Howell, the director of the Neal-Marshall center.
“That's essentially what it is, a big family reunion. We invite our friends, our neighbors, our campus partners, to come and celebrate with us.”
Howell says this year’s event is also honoring about 400 new scholarship recipients who will arrive as freshmen in the fall.
The City of Bloomington hosted celebrations over the weekend, after officially acknowledging Juneteenth for the first time last year.
On June 19, 1865, the last group of enslaved Americans received news of their freedom after union troops landed on Galveston Island in Texas.
Devan Ridgway contributed to this report.
