Jean McLaughlin
BG Independent News
When Anthony King looked out over Worcester Green on Saturday, he saw exactly what he hoped for: inspiring music, delicious food and a diverse group of people celebrating Juneteenth with joy.
“This is a celebration of the freedom that all Americans, especially Black Americans, experienced on June 19, 1865,” said King, who is president of the Bowling Green group BRAVE (Black Rights, Activism, Visibility and Equity).
Now a national holiday, Juneteenth celebrates the day when news of the Emancipation Proclamation finally reached slaves in Texas.
In an age of instant communication and easy misunderstanding, it is hard to imagine that it took nearly two and a half years for news of the Emancipation Proclamation to reach the people of Galveston, Texas.
John Torrence performs at Juneteenth celebration.
This was Worcester Green’s fifth annual Juneteenth celebration, bringing together students and townspeople.
“We’re excited to continue providing a platform for people to experience our culture through music and food,” King said.
In the afternoon, organizers expected attendance to increase in the evening as the weather improved and more music, food and children’s activities continued.
Worcester Green geared up for Juneteenth activities.
“We’re a prayer group, and we have a lot of great faces,” said Najwa Matthews, a member of BRAVE and one of the organizers of Saturday’s event.
Matthews said more important than the attendance numbers was the awareness and joy that commemorating Juneteenth created.
“I hope people feel free, I hope people feel empowered and, honestly, I hope people feel joy,” she said.
Leo Busdieker climbs a bouncy obstacle course.
Leo Busdieker was unmistakably joyful as he zoomed around the bouncy obstacle course with his mother, Ashley Sominski, looking on.
“We just wanted to stop by and support this,” said Sominski, of Bowling Green.
John and Alice Calderonero of Bowling Green, who attend the event every year, also wanted to support the day.
“This is an important holiday,” Alice said. “There is no American history if you leave out African-Americans.”
“We love music and we just want to support it,” John said as he and his wife sat on the lawn listening to the musicians on stage.
Three food trucks provided food and drinks throughout the event.
While waiting for their order at the food truck, Kathleen Tiller and Calvin Carter of Elyria shared their hopes for the day.
“We can learn to be more considerate of each other and get to know each other,” Tiller said.
“And just sit back and enjoy it,” Carter added.
The event featured exhibits from black-owned businesses selling a wide range of products from skincare to jewelry, and there was also an art corner set up under the tent for kids and adults who wanted to draw.
The stage featured live music across genres including Christian, rhythm and blues, indie and neo-soul from artists such as saxophonist Mike Williams, Will Kellam, Jasmine Rene, John Torrence and LIVE Hightower.
The opening performer at the 5th Annual Bowling Green Juneteenth Celebration was poet Live Hightower, who delivered a passionate rendition of poetry that touched on contemporary Black life and the themes of struggle and liberation celebrated on Juneteenth.
Dancers perform “The Wobble” on the Worcester Green during the BG Juneteenth Celebration.
Food trucks were set up on South Grove Street, with Fat Boyz by Al & Zoe serving hot wings and burgers, Stacks Chicken serving Caribbean cuisine and Mustache Mike’s keeping people cool with flavored Italian ices.
Three bouncy structures were inflated, yard games were set up and faces were painted to keep the children entertained.
Ellie Boyle, a BRAVE member who helped organize Saturday’s event, said the annual Juneteenth celebration says a lot about Bowling Green.
“BG shows that it’s a community. There’s a place for everyone,” Boyle said.
Lauryn Brown paints in the artwork area.
Byron McClendon, from Michigan, was sitting on a park bench listening to music and talking about his mood that day.
“There’s a real feeling of unity,” he said. And if people can take the moment to better understand Juneteenth, all the better.
“That was a real liberation for us,” McClendon said. “We just need to keep advocating for the cause and raising awareness for everyone.”
An art area will be set up in a tent on Worcester Green.
The Emancipation Proclamation declared that slaves in the Confederate territories were freed as of January 1, 1863, but it took two and a half years before many slaves were actually freed.
Juneteenth commemorates the day in 1865 when federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, ensuring the emancipation of all slaves.
The Emancipation Proclamation, issued by President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863, stated that all slaves in the Confederate States who had been in rebellion against the Union “shall from that time, and henceforth, and forever be free.”
In reality, the Emancipation Proclamation did not immediately free the slaves. It only applied to areas under Confederate control, not to border states that had slavery or to rebel areas already under Union control.
Because there were no major battles or a large Union military presence in Texas, slavery continued in the state, and many slave owners from outside Texas migrated there, seeing it as a safe haven for slavery.
After the war ended in the spring of 1865, U.S. General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston in June of that year to announce that an estimated 250,000 slaves in Texas had been freed.
However, emancipation didn’t happen overnight for all slaves. In some cases, slave owners kept the information secret until after the harvest season.
But for others, it sparked celebrations among newly freed Black people, and thus the birth of Juneteenth. That December, slavery in America was officially abolished with the adoption of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution.
As such, Juneteenth has special meaning to many Americans and has been celebrated in the African-American community for over 150 years.
BRAVE’s mission is to combat the oppression of Black Americans by opening up access to resources, education and opportunity through economic empowerment, community development and access to civic engagement. The organization also strives to create an inclusive environment where Black people are free to embrace their culture and identity.
Posted by Jan Larson McLaughlin on June 16, 2024.
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