Juneteenth, the oldest known celebration commemorating the ending of slavery in the country, kicked off Saturday, marking 48 years in which the festival has occurred in Tucson.
The Dunbar Cultural Center was filled with an estimated 1,500 Tucsonans throughout the day. Valerie Stanley, president of the Juneteenth committee for the last three years, said the community interactions are important.
“It’s been great because Tucson is such a giving community, we’ve had lots of people who donate their time, donate their money and just come out and make the festival a wonderful thing,” Stanley said.
Various food and merchandise vendors, local companies and law enforcement officers were involved to let people know about the services they provide.
The Juneteenth committee started working on the event in September 2017, creating events leading up to the festival, including a concert and a poetry event.
“It’s a labor of love. We’ve been working really hard,” Stanley said about the festival, which runs solely on donations. “It’s amazing. This is our second year being indoors so I think people heard the word, and they’re out here now, so that’s great.”
The venue was especially needed as rainy weather drenched the area throughout Saturday.
Festival-goers also saw a display of the arts as students from Holladay Magnet Elementary School performed in their step-dance group called “She Phi.”
Tonya Strozier, principal at Holladay, said she used the event not only to teach leadership but also an important history lesson.
“I took that opportunity to teach them the history and what brought us here and why it’s so important to celebrate the freedom that we now have,” Strozier said. “They need to know history. They need to know what they’re walking into and what they’re responsible for carrying into the future.”
Stanley said the event will continue to welcome all people.
“We want to show diversity because that’s what we’re all about,” she said. “We want everybody to come out because everybody’s free from something. So we just say come out and celebrate freedom.”
