Juneteenth 2024

Juneteenth 2023

Juneteenth 2022

Benicia Veterans Memorial Hall at 1150 1st St
11:00 am - 5:00 pm

Read, Watch and Listen.

Juneteenth is an opportunity to educate yourself about the history of slavery and historic disenfranchisement of Black people—and learn more about how you can take steps to address inequality.

Juneteenth 2022 Essay Contest Information:

Benicia Black Lives Matter (BBLM) and Ethnic Notions Present the Juneteenth 2022 Essay Contest!
$1,000 First Prize!
$500 to Runner-Up

Essay question: What parallels would you draw between the lack of diverse representation on the US Supreme Court and the lack of diverse representation in your city's government, school board, and/or school administration?

Who is eligible: Black and African-American high school students (grades 9 through 12) living in Solano County
Essay length: 750 to 1,000 words
Deadline for submission: Friday, May 20, 2022, at 11:59 pm PST
  • Submissions will be judged on the quality and depth of analysis in addressing the question. When describing realized or potential impacts of the lack of diversity in these named bodies, contestants must create a thesis statement and structure their argument in a specific, organized, and compelling manner so audiences emerge with full understanding of said impacts. Creativity in imagining the potential outcomes of more diverse representation is encouraged.
  • Winners will be notified by telephone on Friday, June 3, 2022. The essay contest winner will read their essay at Benicia Black Lives Matter's Juneteenth Festival on Sunday, June 19th, 2022 and accept their prize in person.
  • Email essays to [email protected] by 11:59 pm PST Friday, May 20, 2022. Essays can be sent in email format. (There are no line spacing or font requirements.) Within the document, contestants must include their full name, age, high school, phone number, and email address. The essays must also have a title, be written in English, adhere to the word count requirements, and show proper citation when applicable.
  • Once submitted, essays become the property of BBLM. While the winning contestant may remain anonymous in web and printed publications, and while they may choose to not share their name at the festival, they are expected to attend the festival and read their essay as part of a formal program in person.
  • Either all or portions of the winning essay may be shared in BBLM's web and printed materials, as well as local print media, but it will not altered in any way without the contestant's explicit permission. 

Rules and Regulations
Disclaimer: ***VOID WHEREVER PROHIBITED
Effective: April 8, 2022 at 12:01 am PST
Deadline: Friday, May 20, 2022, at 11:59 pm PST

Section I – General Rules
From Friday, April 15, 2022, through Friday, May 20, 2022 (the “Contest Period”), Benicia Black Lives Matter (BBLM) will conduct an essay contest in the county of Solano in the state of California. To enter, eligible students (see Section II for eligibility requirements) must submit an entry that follows the Submission Guidelines as detailed in Section III. We will not accept or consider entries that do not adhere to the submission guidelines. As further detailed in Section VII, entrants agree to accept and be bound by all terms of these Official Rules and Regulations and to accept and be bound by the decisions of BBLM, whose decisions are final with respect to all matters of the Contest. Only one entry per student is permitted. Entries that are incomplete, are submitted late, do not answer the required question, contain information other than as requested, or otherwise do not comply with these Official Rules and Regulations will not be accepted. By entering the Award Contest, entrants agree that BBLM will own and administer 100% of the copyright in all entries submitted, with the perpetual right to use such entries and that said entries are solely the work of the entrant for whom they are submitting an entry. BBLM will not alter the essay submission for any reason (including grammar and style) without explicit permission from the contestant. Entries will only be used to further the educational mission and goals of BBLM (please see Section VI for a Privacy Statement).
Section II – Eligibility
The Contest is open to all Solano County residents residents of any status who are students who (1) attend school in Solano County, and (2) are in grades 9 -12 attending public, private, religious, or charter schools, (3) are Black.
Section III – Submission Guidelines
Each submission must adhere to the topics and should fully answer the question and all sub-parts. Each submission must adhere to the word limits for each question (between 750 and 1,000 words), and must be submitted by 11:59 pm PST on May 20, 2022. Only emailed submissions will be accepted for the contest. Only one essay per student will be accepted.
Section IV – Judging and Timing
After the Contest Period, the judges selected by BBLM will review and select a first prize winner and a runner-up from all the eligible entries received. Entries will be evaluated based upon the following criteria: adherence to the Submission Guidelines (as stated in Section III), originality, organization, writing style, and depth and quality of analysis. Winners will be notified by telephone on June 3, 2022. BBLM reserves the right in their sole administration of the Contest to disqualify any individual they find or believe to: (i) be tampering with the entry process or the administration of the Contest, (ii) be acting in violation of these Official Rules and Regulations, or (iii) plagiarizing content in any form. The selection of the judges is within the sole and absolute discretion of BBLM. The judges who are selected by BBLM will not have a direct connection to the student who has submitted the entry or be in a position to affect the objectivity and impartiality of any judge with respect to a submission.
Section V – Awards
Winners will be announced to the public on or before June 19, 2022. Winners will receive the following prizes based upon the judges’ evaluations as outlined in Section IV.
Cash prizes:
Grand Prize – One at $1,000
Runner Up – One at $500
Prizes will be awarded on June 19, 2022, at BBLM's Juneteenth Festival. Prizes not claimed within 180 days of the check date or the end of the Contest will be void. BBLM will make commercially reasonable efforts to release the prizes to the winners. All entrants are solely responsible for understanding and complying with any and all federal, state, and local laws, codes, regulations, and ordinances that may apply to the entrants and the activities or business in which such entrants may engage. There may be tax consequences associated with the prizes and income received by a Contest winner, which may include, without limitation, an obligation to report as income and to pay taxes on such income to federal, state, or local authorities. Each Contest winner is responsible to determine the tax consequences of the income received and to comply with all applicable laws in all respects. 
Section VI – Privacy Statement
Upon submission of an entry, the submission (including any and all intellectual property rights therein) becomes the property of BBLM. By entering the Contest, entrants grant BBLM an Irrevocable, perpetual, worldwide and royalty-free right, unless prohibited by law, to use the essay without compensation and without any requirement of notification or permission, for the express purpose of advertising and publicity of BBLM and the Contest in any and all media, now or after. Entrants also grant BBLM permission to use their entry to further its educational mission as stated here. 
Section VII – Availability Disclaimer
The administration of the Contest, including, without limitation, determining the eligibility of a student or entry, selecting of a judge, evaluating any submitted entry, and awarding of the prizes, is within the sole and absolute discretion of BBLM. No student or teacher, or person or organization related thereto, has a right to appeal, contest, dispute, or otherwise challenge any aspect of the administration of the Contest, and any decision of BBLM is final in all respects. No responsibility is assumed for incorrect or inaccurate entry information whether caused by any of the equipment or programming associated with or utilized by this contest or by any human error which may occur in the processing of entries into this Contest. BBLM is not responsible for lost, late, misdirected, or delayed entries or any problems or technical malfunctions of any telephone network or lines, computer on-line systems, servers or providers, computer equipment, software, failure of players on account of technical problems, or traffic congestion on the Internet or at any website or combination thereof. If, for any reason, the Contest is not capable of running as planned, including infection by computer virus, bugs, tampering, unauthorized intervention, fraud, technical failures, or any other causes beyond the control of BBLM, which corrupt or affect the administration, security, fairness, integrity or proper conduct of this contest or for any reason BBLM deems it necessary, BBLM reserves the right to cancel, modify, or delay the Contest.
Section VIII – Limitation of Liability, Governing Law, and Venue
By participating, entrants and submitting teachers release BBLM and its members, leadership body, and agents from any and all liability with respect to all aspects of the Contest including all losses, damage or bodily injury resulting from participation in this Contest, and the possession, acceptance, or misuse of prizes. By participating In the Contest, entrants agree that (a) any and all disputes, claims, and causes of action arising out of or connected to the Contest shall be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action; (b) any and all claims, judgments and awards shall be limited to actual out-of-pocket costs incurred, including costs associated with entering the Contest but in no event attorneys’ fees; and (c) under no circumstances will any entrant or submitting teacher be permitted to obtain any award for, and each hereby waives all rights to, any claim; punitive, incidental, or consequential damages; and any and all rights to have damages multiplied or otherwise increased and any other damages, other than for actual out-of-pocket expenses. All issues and questions concerning the construction, validity, interpretation, and enforceability of these Contest rules, or the rights and obligations of the entrants and BBLM in connection with the Contest, shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of California without giving effect to any choice of law or conflict of law rules or provisions that would cause the application of the laws of any jurisdiction other than California.

Benicia's First Annual Juneteenth Celebration 2021