Parades, picnics and lessons in history marked Juneteenth celebrations on Saturday in the United States, a day that carried even more significance after Congress and President Joe Biden created a federal holiday to commemorate the end of slavery.

A new national holiday was “really awesome. It’s starting to recognize the African-American experience,” said Detroit artist Hubert Massey, 63. “But we still have a long way to go.”

In Detroit, which is 80 per cent Black, students from University Prep Art & Design High School dodged rain to repaint Massey’s block-long message, “Power to the People,” which was created last year on