Mayor David Briley took part in several events celebrating the end of slavery and commemorating those gravely affected by past racial injustices.

The first event of the day was a marker dedication in Bicentennial Park honoring four men who were lynched in Davidson County in the 1800s.

David Jones, Jo Reed and brothers Henry and Ephraim Grizzard were all accused of crimes and swiftly lynched by mobs before they could have their day in court.

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David Jones

David Jones, a black man accused of killing Henry Murray whose home he burglarized, was hung by a mob on March 26, 1872, after being taken from the jail where he was being kept.

The Chicago Tribune described the mob as "condemned and deplored by the mass of citizens."

Jo Reed

On April 30, 1875, Reed killed a police officer responding to alerts of a domestic dispute with his wife. In a similar fashion as the Grizzard brothers, a mob of people took Reed from the jailwhere he was being kept.

As they marched toward a nearby bridge, Reed was shot through the head and his body was suspended from the bridge.

The Clarksville Chronicle wrote: "While the crime for which Reed suffered was an atrocious one and one which deserved speedy and terrible punishment, the section of the mob which took the law into its own hands is to be deplored ..."

Henry and Ephraim Grizzard

The Grizzard brothers were lynched days apart in the spring of 1892 after being accused of assaulting a white woman.

They were taken from the Nashville jail where they were being kept, beaten and hung, after which their bodies were mutilated.

'A story of pride'

Later in the evening at Fort Negley Park, Briley presented a proclamation during the African American Cultural Alliance’s family event. Briley declared June 19, 2019, to be officially called "Juneteenth" in the city and called for more recognition of the significance of African-American heritage in Nashville.

"It is a story of pride, resilience and determination that will always be of historical importance that demonstrates the obstacles African Americans overcome — from slavery to freedom to Jim Crow to the election of the first African-American president, Barack Obama," Briley said in a speech.

Organizers poured drinks in honor of civil rights leaders like Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman and Malcolm X as well as the elderly family members of those in the crowd.

Singer Jessy Wilson performed "Lift Every Voice and Sing," unofficially known as the "black national anthem." Civil rights activist and Freedom Rider Kwame Lillard spoke to the crowd.