Juneteenth, Festivals, Fireworks Highlight 4th Liberty Amendments Month In Vienna

VIENNA, VA — A month-long celebration of the Constitutional Amendments that extended rights to new people will return to Vienna for a fourth year.

Town Manager Mercury Payton had the idea of starting Liberty Amendments Month in 2021 as Juneteenth became a Virginia state holiday. The month-long celebration focuses on 13th, 14th, 15th and 19th Amendments, which granted rights to people who were previously excluded from the U.S. Constitution. The first Liberty Amendments Month in 2021 drew 22,000 people.

Different parts of the month will focus on each of the four Liberty Amendments. The 13th Amendment in 1865 abolished slavery; the 14th Amendment in 1868 granted citizenship to anyone born or naturalized in the U.S. and reaffirmed the right to due process, life, liberty, and property; the 15th Amendment in 1870 protected the right to vote for people regardless of race, color, or past servitude; and the 19th Amendment in 1920 extended the right to vote to women.

The 2024 Liberty Amendments Month will run from June 15 to July 15. A Juneteenth Celebration will kick off the month from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on June 15 at First Baptist Church, 450 Orchard St NW, Vienna, VA. The Liberty Amendments Month opening ceremony is scheduled for 12 p.m. Other features of the event are food trucks, vendors, a free photobooth, children's area with a free book giveaway, free moon bounces, train rides, and live entertainment on an outdoor stage. Attendees can take a shuttle to James H. Hayes Elks Lodge (250 Nutley St NW, Vienna, VA) to see the classic cars and trucks in the Juneteenth Classic Car and Truck Show. The first 500 attendees at Juneteenth get a swag bag filled with goodies.

Some events are ongoing, like museum exhibits and flash card quizzes on different amendments at the Freeman Store and Museum and the Vienna Community Center, Liberty Amendments Learning Tour outside the Freeman Store and Museum and the Vienna Community Center, displays and giveaways at the Vienna Farmers Market, African American Historic Sites Tour of Vienna and Body Grace Fitness Class and 13th Amendment Event.

Below are more Liberty Amendments Month highlights. See more event details on the town's Liberty Amendments Month web page.

13th Amendment: June 15-21

June 18: From Idea to Law Panel with Delegate Siebold, 6:30 p.m. Town Hall

June 18: Kids on the Green and Storytime, 10 a.m. Town Green

June 19: Juneteenth and Liberty Amendments Day, Town of Vienna offices closed

14th Amendment: June 22-28

June 25: Kids on the Green and Storytime, 10 a.m. Town Green

June 26: Liberty and the Press Panel, 6:30 p.m. Vienna Community Center, Seeman Auditorium

June 26: Textile Museum Day Trip (DC Fight for Freedom Exhibit), 9:30 a.m.

June 28: Summer Concert and Children’s Readers Theatre, 5:45 p.m. Town Green

15th Amendment: June 29-July 5

June 29: Naturalization Ceremony, 3:30 p.m. Vienna Community Center, Seeman Auditorium

July 2: Independence Day Celebration and Fireworks, 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Yeonas Park

July 4: Public Reading of Foundational Documents, 11 a.m. Vienna Community Center, Seeman Auditorium

19th Amendment: July 6-15

July 7: Big Screen on the Green: Hidden Figures, 5 p.m. Town Green

July 9: Kids on the Green and Storytime, 10 a.m. Town Green

July 9: National Museum of Women in the Arts Day Trip, 10 a.m.

July 10: VBA Mixer and Empowering Women Panel, 5:45 p.m. Vienna Community Center, Seeman Auditorium

July 12: Vienna Multicultural Festival, closing event, 4 p.m. 9 p.m. Town Green

Sponsors of 2024 Liberty Amendments Month are Fairfax County Public Libraries, First Baptist Church of Vienna, Historic Vienna, Inc., Phenomenal Photo Booth, Vienna Business Association, AARP, Emmanuel Lutheran Church, Emmaus United Church of Christ, Friends of Patrick Henry Library, James H Hayes/Bull Run Lodge #529 E, M&T Bank, Vienna Public Art Foundation, Vienna Baha'i Faith Community, Optimists of Greater Vienna and Studio 76.