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Federal Way proclaims Juneteenth and continues annual flag-raising observance
Summary
At its sixth annual Juneteenth event, Federal Way officials proclaimed June 19 as Juneteenth for the city and noted the continuation of an annual flag-raising ceremony that began after the council's initial recognition.
The City of Federal Way formally proclaimed June 19 as Juneteenth during its sixth annual Juneteenth celebration, an event organizer said.
The proclamation was read at a ceremony at City Hall that also included an invocation by Pastor Joseph Bowman and musical performances by Pamela Bowman. An event speaker said the city’s first flag-raising ceremony followed the council’s initial recognition and that the annual observance has continued since.
“Welcome to our sixth annual Juneteenth celebration here at the City Of Federal Way,” the event host said at the start of the program. The host later read the proclamation: “Now, therefore, we, the undersigned mayor and the city council members of the city of Federal Way, do hereby proclaim June 19 as Juneteenth in Federal Way and encourage our community to remember the sacrifices of so many who have come before to ensure all Americans remain free.”
A speaker at the event summarized recent state and federal actions recognizing the day, saying, “In 2021, Governor Inslee signed House Bill 1016 into law, making Juneteenth a state holiday. And it was right after that, shortly after that President Biden signed legislation making it a federal holiday.”
Organizers told attendees the inaugural flag-raising at City Hall took place three days after the council’s first recognition and that the city has observed the event annually since. The ceremony included a prayer and both the U.S. national anthem and the Black national anthem performed by Pamela Bowman.
Juneteenth commemorates the June 19, 1865, announcement in Galveston, Texas, that enslaved people in Texas were free following the Civil War; the day has since become a widely observed commemoration of the end of slavery in the United States. The event host and other speakers framed the local proclamation and flag-raising as part of that broader historical observance.
The proclamation was presented as a formal recognition by the mayor and city council; no roll-call vote or motions were recorded in the event transcript.
Pastor Joseph Bowman offered the invocation at the ceremony, and event organizers encouraged residents to continue attending future Juneteenth observances in Federal Way.
