by Sarah Thomack
St. Joseph Post
A Juneteenth celebration will still take place this weekend in St. Joseph, it will just be a smaller event due to COVID-19 concerns.
Juneteenth marks the day in 1865 when federal troops arrived in Texas to enforce the Emancipation Proclamation and ensure all enslaved people were freed. The troops’ arrival came two and a half years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation.
Local Juneteenth Committee President LaTonya Williams says the celebration of Juneteenth is usually a weekend-long festival.
“It has a parade, it has educational aspects, children’s events, talent shows, it’s just a big festival,” Williams says. “But due to COVID-19, a lot of events all over the country were cancelled including ours, but with all of the recent events, our committee chose to at least host a picnic in order to hopefully bring some people together, educate more people on Juneteenth and the history and just to appreciate our differences more.”
Williams says anyone in the community is invited to come to the picnic which will also include information and an opportunity to register to vote.
“You can also learn about businesses in the area… there’s a lot of little businesses and they’re minority-owned that hardly anyone knows about, people will be able to get information about that,” Williams says. “If people are interested in Juneteenth and getting educated about the history and even if you’re interested in joining our committee - because we always need people - come out, have lunch and you’ll be able to meet other people on the committees and just have a good time.”
The Juneteenth Celebration Picnic takes place at noon on Saturday at John Lucas playground in St. Joseph.