Knoxville, TENNESSEE— Juneteenth celebrations are underway in Knoxville.

The city kicked off its celebration with a performance in Market Square on Thursday night. Lawn chairs filled the square as fans jammed to the tunes of a Jackson Five tribute band.

Soldiers in Civil War-era replica uniforms led the march on Friday morning’s Juneteenth and Martin Luther King Jr. parade in Chilhowee Park before celebrating with music, games and food in Dr. Walter Hardy Park. The Beck Cultural Exchange Center provided the uniforms to honor the United States Colored Troops, who fought in the Union Army during the Civil War.

The Beck Center even opened a new exhibit on Friday for the holiday, honoring the stories of the enslaved people of the Mabry-Hazen House, which still stands doors down from Beck itself.

But preserving Knoxville’s Black history is something the Beck Center has spent over 50 years doing, well before Juneteenth became a nationally recognized holiday. It opened in 1975 following the process of urban renewal, which displaced thousands of African American families living in Knoxville.

Beck Center president Renee Kesler, who was born and raised in Knoxville, said she wants to instill continuous progress for the city’s Black communities, and has worked at it since she came to the center in 2014.

“There’s really no such thing as African American history, or Black history, it really is just American history,” said Kesler, who was also named the city’s African American historian in 2025. “It’s just that we haven’t told the full breadth of the story. Our hope is every year, to keep adding more to that narrative, until we have the full story of American history.”

That’s why she implemented a yearly event where Black legislators from across Tennessee come together for panel discussions with community members about issues important to them— like healthcare, economics, safety or public education.

“They have an opportunity to lift their voices before a captive audience of legislators who could make [those issues] a part of their push within their respective communities,” Kesler said.

She said these panels have fostered and nurtured relationships between citizens and elected officials for over a decade, a two-way discussion that keeps residents feeling heard.

So, whether it’s through a colorful parade, a thoughtful panel or an artifact-filled exhibit, Kesler said she’s proud to celebrate milestones of progress for the Black community, while trekking towards more progress day in and day out.

“It is all of our responsibility to leave the world better than we found it,” Kesler said. “I’m hopeful that every year we get another chance to do something good.”