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WILMINGTON-Celebrating Juneteenth; An African American July 4th

June 19, 2019

Wilmingtonians parade down Church Street during this year’s Juneteenth Parade and Festival.

 

“As African Americans, it’s important for us to teach our youth our history because it allows you to know who you are and where you can go…”

What is Juneteenth? For most, it’s a made-up word with little to know meaning, but to African American’s it’s an annual holiday observed on the 19th of June in celebration of the county’s true abolition of legalized slavery. According to juneteenth.com, dating back to 1865, it was on June 19th that the Union soldiers, led by Major General Gordon Granger, landed at Galveston, Texas with news that the war had ended and that the enslaved were now free.

With Delaware acting as the nation’s inaugural state, and over half of the city of Wilmington’s population being comprised of African American residents (according to 2018 U.S. Census Bureau), it only makes sense that the community would want to host a citywide observance for the holiday in the form of a festival.

Saturday marked the 25th anniversary of the festival and kicked things off with a Freedom parade beginning at Kirkwood Park and ending at an entertainment-filled Christina Park.

Wilmingtonians celebrate in Christina Park this year’s Juneteenth Parade and Festival.

The marchers consisted of an array of community organizations such as My Sister’s Keeper, the Okimma Delaware Graduate Chapter of Swing Phi Swing Social Fellowship Inc., Her Story Ensemble, a drumline, and pageant participants from the Delaware Juneteenth Association.

Once at Christina Park, guests were welcomed by the event host Keith James who announced the food and merchant vendors, event sponsors, Wilmington City Council, special guest speakers, and performers who were all in attendance.

One act was a lyrical/contemporary dance routine performed on stage by Saniya Gay, 2019’s crowned Ms. Juneteenth. Rita Bell, a parent and advocate of the Juneteenth pageant program spoke on Gay’s behalf.

“This is my ninth year participating with the pageant and Juneteenth event. It’s a six-month program, and at the end I wound up becoming close with the young ladies, allowing me to pour back into the community,” said Bell. She followed up by expressing “mentorship is a very important form of education, and I enjoy spreading the word about Juneteenth because it’s information that not a lot of people have knowledge of.”

The pageant program helps to promote education and sisterhood and encourages girls to learn about their culture. The young lady that is crowned each year is one who embodies and exercises these traits.

“We have a facebook page, so we recruit most of the pageant girls using social media, flyers, and word of mouth. When in competition, all of the senior division contestants are judged based on their participation in the program, an interview, their talent, and their on-stage answer to the pageant question,” Bell continued.

Wilmingtonians parade down Church Street during this year’s Juneteenth Parade and Festival.

 

In between acts, guests enjoyed snacks, bouncy houses, and shopping from black owned companies that came to share their goods and services. “This year we came here to set up and sell African American based products like soaps and oils, books by black authors, and conscious clothing,” said Timothy Berry, a member of the Nuwaupu organization.

In recent years, Juneteenth hadn’t been represented in Wilmington due to a lack of funding, but today the overall response from the guests was positive. Many spoke up and expressed how they’d like to see more promotion of the event in the future and recommended that the city provide transportation for the people who’d like to attend but don’t live in the area.

“Juneteenth is like our July 4th, but a lot of people don’t even know that this holiday even exists, that’s why we definitely need to bring more recognition to it,” said Berry. In fact, research shows that in 1980 Emancipation Day in Texas became a legal state holiday, but today, despite its official status, only 37 of the 50 U.S. states recognize Juneteenth as a holiday.

“As African Americans, it’s important for us to teach our youth our history because it allows you to know who you are and where you can go. You need to be able to appreciate the struggles and the sacrifices that our ancestors made to get us where we are today. We have to take advantage of every opportunity we have to grow, so that we can stand confidently, bold, and proud in who we are!” said Bell.