EL CENTRO — Juneteenth, a combination of “June” and “19th,” commemorates June 19, 1865, the day Union Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger delivered the Emancipation Proclamation to Texas, freeing the last remaining slaves in the United States at the end of the Civil War.
On Saturday, June 15, hundreds of people gathered at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Sports Pavilion in El Centro to celebrate Juneteenth ahead of its third anniversary as a federal holiday on Wednesday and learn about Juneteenth courtesy of the Imperial Valley Social Justice Committee, a nonprofit community organization.
Adrienne Lawson is special events coordinator for the Imperial Valley Social Justice Committee. The nonprofit community organization, which hosts an annual Juneteenth celebration, hosts the event to spread awareness. “We’re here for Juneteenth to educate people… and many of the booths and vendors know the history of Juneteenth, but not everyone in the community knows what Juneteenth is,” she said, adding that they’re taking the message to schools. | Photo by Francisco Orozco
Officials with the IV Social Justice Committee said they want to spread awareness. “The reason we’re here for Juneteenth is to educate people,” said Adrienne Lawson, special events coordinator for the committee. “Many of the booths and vendors know the history of Juneteenth, but not everyone in the community knows what Juneteenth is.”
Curiosity brought visitors like El Centro resident Yvonne Hernandez and her family to the event. As an interracial couple raising a daughter together, Hernandez said she understands the importance of learning about each other’s cultural histories.
“I wanted to know more about what June 19th was,” Hernandez said. “Obviously, I’m married to an African-American man and he taught me a lot, but I wanted to know what it was.”
“Sometimes we have to learn about each other, what we’ve been through, and our backgrounds,” she added.
A variety of Juneteenth-related celebrations were held Saturday night, followed by the second annual Opal Lee Awards ceremony. The award is named for the 97-year-old Marshall, Texas, woman known as the “Grandmother of Juneteenth” for her work in getting the day recognized as a federal holiday. The former teacher and school counselor will receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor, from President Biden in 2024.
Performers included folkloric dance group Carmeria Toot Bell, African drummers Healing Rhythm, and the vibrant dragon dancers of Calixico Martial Arts Academy. In addition to the popular dragon dance, they also did martial arts demonstrations. There was also soul food for sale, including smoked ribs, hot links, Louisiana boiled crab, and sweet tea. There were also giveaways, games, face painting, balloon art, vendors, and a variety of performers.
Guests at a Juneteenth event on Saturday, June 15, enjoyed a performance by African drummers Healing Rhythms. The event was organized by the Imperial Valley Social Justice Committee inside the Martin Luther King Jr. Sports Pavilion in El Centro. | Photo by Francisco Orozco Schooling on Juneteenth
When it comes to celebrating Juneteenth, individuals like Lawson of the Social Justice Committee want the day to not just be celebrated as a holiday, but for people to understand the history behind the holiday.
“I want people to understand the culture of Juneteenth and understand that we’re all here,” Lawson said. “Learning about Juneteenth and coming together, you know what I mean? Because there’s so much hate in the world against African-Americans, against Asians, against all kinds of people.”
“So we need to spread the word that we are all one. Look not at the color of our skin, but at who we are and what we do for our community.”
Kamika Mitchell wears Juneteenth earrings and a big smile as she enjoys the festivities during the Imperial Valley Social Justice Commission’s annual Juneteenth celebration at the Martin Luther King Jr. Sports Pavilion in El Centro on Saturday, June 15. | Photo by Francisco Orozco
And when it comes to teaching, the fundamentals of education start in school. But as history seems to slowly be disappearing from history books and classrooms, Lawson says key points of the country’s past will begin to slip away. Lawson is trying to keep it alive by visiting area schools to spread awareness about Juneteenth.
“Juneteenth really changed the lives of African-Americans because, like I said, they were enslaved — 250,000 people remained in Texas (after the official abolition of slavery) — but it’s not taught in schools,” Lawson said.
“It’s disappointing sometimes. It’s really disappointing when students in high school don’t even know what Juneteenth is, they don’t know anything about Black history, so it’s not really being taught…Teachers aren’t teaching Juneteenth in the classroom. I think it’s an important part of history and it should be talked about.”
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Although the Emancipation Proclamation was issued in 1863, completely abolishing slavery, more than 250,000 slaves remained in the Confederate state of Texas. It wasn’t until two and a half years later, in 1865, that about 2,000 Union soldiers arrived on foot at Galveston Bay and proclaimed the emancipation of the slaves by presidential decree. From that day onwards, this day is known as Juneteenth.
Juneteenth would never have been recognized as a national holiday without the continued efforts of Opal Lee, who for decades walked 2.5 miles each year to represent the 2.5 years it took for news of the Emancipation Proclamation to reach Texas in 1865.
A folklorico dancer in a yellow dress spins and twirls while singing along with other dancers during the Imperial Valley Social Justice Committee’s annual Juneteenth celebration at the Martin Luther King Jr. Sports Pavilion in El Centro on Saturday, June 15. | Photo by Francisco Orozco The Battle for Juneteenth
Among the participants on June 15 was El Centro resident Rosalind Summers, who explained that she grew up in an activist family: In the late 1960s, her mother marched with civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr. in Los Angeles for equality.
Visitors can test their knowledge about Juneteenth on games set up along the walls inside the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Sports Pavilion during the Juneteenth celebration on Saturday, June 15. | Photo by Francisco Orozco
And when asked if there was anything she wanted people to take away from the event, she said it was to understand the hardships and struggles that people like her mother had to endure in order to pave the way for young people of the future.
“You know, things weren’t like they are now back in the day. Someone had to work really hard to get to where they are now. It wasn’t easy, it was hard,” Summers said. “People marched, they were sent to jail, they were spat on, they were shot with hoses.”
In truth, there were many challenges, failures, and victories along the way to declaring Juneteenth a national holiday.
“People worked so hard to get us recognized,” she says, “and young people today need to know what other people went through to get to where we are now.”
A woman attending the Imperial Valley Social Justice Commission’s annual Juneteenth celebration gets her face painted inside the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Sports Pavilion in El Centro on Saturday, June 15. Photo by Francisco Orozco
The Imperial Valley Social Justice Committee held its annual Juneteenth celebration in El Centro on Saturday, June 15. | Photo by Francisco Orozco
The Imperial Valley Social Justice Committee’s annual Juneteenth celebration was held in El Centro on Saturday, June 15. Photo by Francisco Orozco
The Imperial Valley Social Justice Committee held its annual Juneteenth celebration in El Centro on Saturday, June 15. | Photo by Francisco Orozco
The Imperial Valley Social Justice Committee held its annual Juneteenth celebration in El Centro on Saturday, June 15. | Photo by Francisco Orozco
The Imperial Valley Social Justice Committee’s annual Juneteenth celebration was held in El Centro on Saturday, June 15. Photo by Francisco Orozco
The Imperial Valley Social Justice Committee held its annual Juneteenth celebration in El Centro on Saturday, June 15. | Photo by Francisco Orozco
The Imperial Valley Social Justice Committee’s annual Juneteenth celebration was held in El Centro on Saturday, June 15. Photo by Francisco Orozco
The Imperial Valley Social Justice Committee held its annual Juneteenth celebration in El Centro on Saturday, June 15. | Photo by Francisco Orozco
The Imperial Valley Social Justice Committee’s annual Juneteenth celebration was held in El Centro on Saturday, June 15. Photo by Francisco Orozco
The Imperial Valley Social Justice Committee’s annual Juneteenth celebration was held in El Centro on Saturday, June 15. Photo by Francisco Orozco
The Imperial Valley Social Justice Committee held its annual Juneteenth celebration in El Centro on Saturday, June 15. | Photo by Francisco Orozco
The Imperial Valley Social Justice Committee held its annual Juneteenth celebration in El Centro on Saturday, June 15. | Photo by Francisco Orozco
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