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The Juneteenth Association of Tyler held its annual Juneteenth Parade on Saturday.

Cars, floats, and children filled the streets of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard for the festive event.

The parade began at 9 a.m. at the corner of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, and Glenwood Boulevard, and ended at Woldert Park.

The celebration continued at the park with food, giveaways, vendors, music and recognition of scholarship recipients.

Juneteenth, also known as Juneteenth Independence Day, Freedom Day, or Emancipation Day, is a holiday in the United States that commemorates the announcement of the abolition of slavery in the U.S. state of Texas in June 1865, and more generally the emancipation of African-American slaves through the Confederate South.

Juneteenth marks the day when federal troops arrived in Galveston in 1865 to take control of the state and ensure all enslaved people be freed, according to The History Channel. The troops’ arrival came a full two and a half years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. Juneteenth honors the end to slavery in the United States and is considered the longest-running African American holiday.

Celebrated on June 19, the term is a portmanteau of June and nineteenth, and is recognized as a state holiday or special day of observance in most states. On June 17, 2021, it officially became a federal holiday. Juneteenth 2023 will occur on Monday.

View our other photo gallery from Saturday’s parade here.