After having been postponed in 2020 amid the spread of the coronavirus, the annual Juneteenth Community Empowerment Festival returned over the weekend with energy, excitement and a renewed sense of hope.
The Juneteenth event is the largest community festival in Rocky Mount and the City Council on July 13, 2020, voted to make Juneteenth a paid holiday for city employees.
The celebration kicked off Friday at Washington and Tarboro streets with dancing and other entertainment, but the main show was Saturday at the Helen P. Gay Rocky Mount Historic Train Station on Coastline Drive. Singing, dancing, acrobatics and speeches filled the day from 10 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Well before President Joe Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law, the day had long been special and meaningful for many Black communities. On June 19, 1865, two years after President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, enslaved African Americans in Galveston, Texas, were told by Union soldiers that they were free.
This weekend, festivals, fairs, parties, rallies and memorials occurred all over the country as Americans celebrated freedom and independence. Juneteenth, the longest running African-American holiday in the United States, has for years been a cause for celebration.
This year, however, the revelry is different than it has been in past years. Not only is Juneteenth now a federal holiday, but the day also comes on the heels of a divided nation slowly piecing itself back together. Over the past several years, the country has seen nationwide protests over police brutality; the deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery and other Black Americans; and the blatant systematic racism that still lives within American institutions.
Friends Shirley Whitaker and Annette Xavier were among the hundreds of participants enjoying the sunshine at Saturday’s event. While the two women said they are pleased that Juneteenth has finally been accepted as a holiday at the national level, they are concerned about the number of people who were and still are unaware of Juneteenth to begin with.
“What amazes me about this country is that there are still so many people who have never heard of this important holiday,” Whitaker said. “But I am happy to be seeing so many people out celebrating today, so maybe next year there will be even more awareness.”
Although Xavier said she is encouraged about the future, her frustration at the lack of knowledge about Juneteenth within the Black community is upsetting.
“I’m happy to be here celebrating, I really am,” she said. “I’m just crushed that our people have been kept in the dark for so long about who we are and how much this country really does have to offer us.”
Barry Swain of Rocky Mount was a first-time attendee who could barely hide the big grin on his face.
“This is my first time coming out to celebrate Juneteenth and basically what makes today so special is that it’s finally being recognized by our leaders and now all Americans can officially celebrate it,” he said. “People always want to look towards hope and better things for the future and I feel strongly that these celebrations will continue. I also believe that we’ll see a significant amount of people of different races celebrating with us. It’s past time that this country acknowledge what an important day it is.”
June 22, 2021 at 11:00AM
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Festival celebrates Juneteenth holiday | Local News | rockymounttelegram.com - Rocky Mount Telegram
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