8 Ways to Teach Your Kids About the Importance of Juneteenth

Cooking and eating a meal together is a traditional part of any Juneteenth celebration. Historically, eating red foods is an important way to commemorate those who were enslaved. "The practice of eating red foods — red cake, barbecue, punch, and fruit — may owe its existence to the enslaved Yoruba and Kongo brought to Texas in the 19th century," writes culinary historian Michael Twitty in his blog Afroculinaria. "For both of these cultures the color red is the embodiment of spiritual power and transformation."