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Lansing set to celebrate Juneteenth with walk
The 17th annual Lansing Juneteenth Celebration today commemorates a day of freedom and bringing community together to celebrate the achievements that have been made since the last of the U.S. slaves were freed in 1865.
President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation freeing slaves on Jan. 1, 1863, but it wasn't until June 19, 1865, that the news reached Galveston, Texas, and the surrounding areas.
Today's Juneteenth events - being held in St. Joseph Park, 2125 W. Hillsdale St. - will include The Juneteenth Peace Walk, a health fair, special children's activities, and several singers and bands throughout the day. Children's activities will include a clown, face painting, balloon animals, a chess competition and crafts. For the first time, there also will be a Juneteenth car show.
Michael McFadden, an announcer for some of the activities, said the day is important for bringing the community together to look back and look ahead.
"Juneteenth isn't just about what happened with the Emancipation Proclamation - it's about what happened as a result of that," he said. "We're celebrating the progress that has been made - of course, there's progress yet to be made - but we're celebrating the future, too."
Juneteenth became a state holiday in 2005 after Gov. Jennifer Granholmsigned legislation recognizing the third Saturday in June as Juneteenth National Freedom Day in Michigan. That made Michigan the 18th state to recognize Juneteenth as a state holiday.
It is now recognized as a state holiday in 36 states and the District of Columbia, according to the National Juneteenth Holiday Campaign, but there is still no national recognition of it.
Members of the Lansing Juneteenth Celebration are hopeful the holiday can become nationally recognized.
Debra Plummer was involved with planning the first Juneteenth celebration in Lansing, and she said seeing the event grow every year has been encouraging.
Seeing national recognition would mean more people are finally are aware of a historic day that is not always talked about.
"You're talking about a country coming together and saying that was something so terrible in our history that none of us liked, but we learned from it," she said. "It would tell me America is finally learning from its past how to move into its future."
Source: LSI.com
President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation freeing slaves on Jan. 1, 1863, but it wasn't until June 19, 1865, that the news reached Galveston, Texas, and the surrounding areas.
Today's Juneteenth events - being held in St. Joseph Park, 2125 W. Hillsdale St. - will include The Juneteenth Peace Walk, a health fair, special children's activities, and several singers and bands throughout the day. Children's activities will include a clown, face painting, balloon animals, a chess competition and crafts. For the first time, there also will be a Juneteenth car show.
Michael McFadden, an announcer for some of the activities, said the day is important for bringing the community together to look back and look ahead.
"Juneteenth isn't just about what happened with the Emancipation Proclamation - it's about what happened as a result of that," he said. "We're celebrating the progress that has been made - of course, there's progress yet to be made - but we're celebrating the future, too."
Juneteenth became a state holiday in 2005 after Gov. Jennifer Granholmsigned legislation recognizing the third Saturday in June as Juneteenth National Freedom Day in Michigan. That made Michigan the 18th state to recognize Juneteenth as a state holiday.
It is now recognized as a state holiday in 36 states and the District of Columbia, according to the National Juneteenth Holiday Campaign, but there is still no national recognition of it.
Members of the Lansing Juneteenth Celebration are hopeful the holiday can become nationally recognized.
Debra Plummer was involved with planning the first Juneteenth celebration in Lansing, and she said seeing the event grow every year has been encouraging.
Seeing national recognition would mean more people are finally are aware of a historic day that is not always talked about.
"You're talking about a country coming together and saying that was something so terrible in our history that none of us liked, but we learned from it," she said. "It would tell me America is finally learning from its past how to move into its future."
Source: LSI.com