As cities across Tennessee prepare for Juneteenth celebrations with banners unfurling, vendors setting up, and leaders finalizing programs honoring Black liberation, a deeper question lingers: What does it mean to celebrate freedom in a state restricting how that freedom’s history is taught?

Thursday, June 19 marks the Juneteenth holiday, the day in 1865 when enslaved African-Americans in Galveston, Texas learned they were free. The Rev. Al Sharpton and Maura Gay discuss.

Milan Campbell proudly holds up a Juneteenth flag during Stamford's Juneteenth celebration at the Stamford Government Center on June 17, 2023. Organizers of Juneteenth events across the state say it's more important now than ever to celebrate the holiday in the face of federal attacks on Black history and other diverse groups.