This annual festival celebrating freedom and the rights gained with it, continues the tradition of the oldest African American holiday, celebrating the Emancipation Proclamation and the end of slavery in the United States. This free, family-friendly event includes a fashion show, live entertainment, educational presentations, activities for all ages, and delicious food and artisan vendors from all over the region.

Entertainment beings with lively music by Calvin Handy of Jazz Patrol, followed by a trio of speakers sharing different aspects of African American culture and experience: UC Davis Resident Director Hakeem Croom, Master Quilter Khristel Johnson, and Leigh Roberts who will honor the memory of local Tuskegee Airman Boyd Taylor, who passed away last year. Khristel Johnson will also display her visually stunning quilts that are designed using African fabrics, beds and textures to illustrate African American history through stories and significant events.