“We celebrated the shared cultural values of an inclusive Juneteenth experience with speakers, a gospel concert, traditional Native American dancers, African drummers and dancers, Colonial Regimental reenactors, activity for young adults and so much more,” said Charles Roberts, the event organizer, founder and executive director of RI Slave History Medallions (RISHM). “It was a complexly rewarding experience, an Act of Remembrance.”
Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, when Union Gen. Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, to enforce the Emancipation Proclamation — freeing the enslaved people of the Confederacy more than two years after the order had taken effect. For Rhode Islanders, the day also resonates with our own history: at the 1778 Battle of Rhode Island, colonial troops — among them the Black soldiers of the 1st Rhode Island Regiment — fought the British for the promise of American freedom
This is a synopsis of photos that illustrates what happened on Juneteenth on June 20th, 2026 at Fort Adams.
Speakers: Jack Reed, Gregg Amore, Governor Mckee, Newport City Mayor Charlie Holder
The RPM Gospel Voices of Rhode Island
Praises for Sidy Maiga and his African Roots Reggae Dance Band.
Members of the RI First Regiment talk shop.
Narragansett and Pokanoket Tribal Nations Celebration at Fort Adams
Tracy ‘Dancing Star’ Brown and the 1st Black Regiment of Trenton.
Freedom Day at Fort Adams.
On Friday, July 17th, Stages of Freedom met over lunch with a group of colleagues working in Rhode Island Black history to discuss their various projects and the difficulties of fundraising in today‘s polarized environment.
Pictured above, left to right, are Margaret Roberts of RI Slave History Medallions; Rose Weaver, a multi-talented creator of Waterspill Junction, Mary Minow, an independent researcher and legal consultant; Ray Rickman, Stages of Freedom co-founder; Elizabeth Francis, executive director of Rhode Island Humanities; Gail Burton, playwright/producer; Charles Roberts of RI Slave History Medallions; and Hadley Arnold, co-owner and curator of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Warren, where the groundbreaking Black Gospel Window was discovered.
Robb Dimmick, co-founder of Stages of Freedom, was behind the camera. The event marked the revival of their long-running Freedom Factor, a salon of African American arts and ideas.
Tickets for RISHM’s 2026 Black History Walking Tour Season are available online! The tour starts Saturdays and Sundays at 10:00am, leaving from
13 Bowen’s Wharf, the corner of Market Street and America’s Cup Avenue, near the ticket office, the Pilot House.
We will travel up to Trinity Church and into the heart of African American activity in the colony of Newport, the Historic District. We honor those who lived in bondage and resisted until they had their freedom. The tour season ends on Saturday, October 31st.
Take a walk with us across Historic Hill to learn about – and honor – Newport’s Colonial Black American History. Please join us to hear their stories of black excellence.
Why Your Gift Matters:
On April 11th, the Newport Art Museum hosted the first public viewing of the George T. Downing statue maquette. This 18-inch bronze study honors a Gilded Age hero of Newport.
On June 20th, we produced our annual Juneteenth celebration at Fort Adams as part of Rhode Island’s Semiquincentennial celebration of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
Our request: a gift of $50
Your $50 gift supports educational materials for school groups, helps underwrite a public program and artist communication, and the funding of community outreach and transportation for students.
Funds help research, commissioning, and installation of public works that tell the fuller story of Newport’s past, along with school programs, guided tours, and lectures that reach learners of all ages.
Public art and public programs spark conversations that lead to greater understanding and stronger communities.
Will you please join us in preserving and creating history for future generations?
Your gift of $50 makes building the George T. Downing monument in Newport a viable possibility. Your ongoing annual support of our Juneteenth celebration builds civic education as an opportunity to appreciate and take pride in our nation’s history.
Thank you for believing that art and history can change the way we see one another. Together we will honor the past, educate the present, and inspire the future.
Charles Roberts, Executive Director RI Slave History Medallions
Thank you so much for your tax-deductible contribution. To donate, please click on the button below, visit the DONATE page on our website, www.
We extend our deepest appreciation for your continued support of our work in 2026!
In addition to our private donors and sponsors, we extend our sincere gratitude to these supporters:
RI State Legislators, RI Commerce, Black Philanthropy Bannister Fund, Bank Newport, Prince Charitable Trusts, Gruben Charitable Foundation, Heritage Harbor Foundation, RI Foundation’s Newport County Fund, and Community Gifts from the generous grants and supporters over the years.
Our mission is to tell the forgotten stories of Rhode Island’s free and enslaved African-American and Indigenous peoples. Through our statewide initiative to install interactive markers at historic sites, we engage in research, present public education programs, and build community partnerships to bring awareness to our state’s dominant role in the institution of American slavery and to the effects of that legacy today. www.
Rhode Island Slave History Medallions invites the community to a special Juneteenth Semiquincentennial Living History Celebration at Fort Adams State Park in Newport.
Held on the parade grounds inside the fort, this family-friendly event will commemorate Juneteenth while also honoring the anniversary of the Revolutionary War and the history of the Battle of Rhode Island.
We invite all visitors to learn more about RISHM’s events and accomplishments in 2025 and support our Annual Campaign, from Giving Tuesday (Dec. 2, 2025) through 401 Gives Day (April 1, 2026).
RISHM relies on the generous support of private donations to continue the underrepresented but important work of marking the landscape of where slave history happened in Rhode Island.
