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In photos: Juneteenth Celebration in Culpeper

by | Jun 23, 2025

A large crowd gathered in downtown Culpeper Thursday despite rainy conditions.
Children playing in the kid’s corner at Thursday’s concert and Juneteenth celebration in Culpeper.
“Freedom Unity Legacy” t-shirts worn by Déja Grúv, the band that performed at Thursday night’s concert.
Lead singing trio of Déja Grúv.
J’sun Tyler, founder and band manager of Déja Grúv, performing on stage Thursday.
The crowd watches Déja Grúv’s performance before thunderstorms started.
Attendees prepare for more showers as a thunderstorm moves in.
Beating the heat.
Crowd members moved towards the stage to dance to the music.
A couple dancing at Thursday's concert.
Déja Grúv performing on stage.
Vendors lined the entrance to the concert, including the Culpeper NAACP chapter.
“One Love” hat worn by an attendee.
A young attendee at Thursday night’s concert and Juneteenth celebration in downtown Culpeper.
A young fan wearing Déja Grúv merch.
Déja Grúv vocalist sporting red sunglasses at Thursday’s concert.

The Culpeper Branch of the NAACP highlighted Juneteenth on Thursday as part of the Town of Culpeper, Culpeper Renaissance 3rd Thursday summer concert series at The Depot.

Juneteenth National Independence Day, June 19, became a federal holiday in 2021The holiday dates to 1865 when 250,000 enslaved persons in Texas were set free by the U.S. Army during the final days of the American Civil War.

Photos by Ireland Hayes

Author

  • Ireland Hayes

    Ireland joined Foothills Forum as a full-time reporter in 2023 after graduating from the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication with a degree in journalism and minor in music. As a student, she gained valuable experience in reporter and editor positions at The Red & Black, an award-winning student newspaper, and contributed to Grady Newsource and the Athens Banner-Herald. She spent three years as an editorial assistant at Georgia Magazine, UGA’s quarterly alumni publication, and interned with The Bitter Southerner. Growing up in a small town in Southeast Georgia, Ireland developed a deep appreciation for rural communities and the unique stories they have to tell. She completed undergraduate research on news deserts, ghost papers and the ways rural communities in Georgia are being forced to adapt to a lack of local news. This research further sparked her interest in a career contributing to the preservation of local and rural news.

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By Ireland Hayes

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Ireland joined Foothills Forum as a full-time reporter in 2023 after graduating from the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication with a degree in journalism and minor in music. As a student, she gained valuable experience in reporter and editor positions at The Red & Black, an award-winning student newspaper, and contributed to Grady Newsource and the Athens Banner-Herald. She spent three years as an editorial assistant at Georgia Magazine, UGA’s quarterly alumni publication, and interned with The Bitter Southerner. Growing up in a small town in Southeast Georgia, Ireland developed a deep appreciation for rural communities and the unique stories they have to tell. She completed undergraduate research on news deserts, ghost papers and the ways rural communities in Georgia are being forced to adapt to a lack of local news. This research further sparked her interest in a career contributing to the preservation of local and rural news.