Chattanoogans celebrate Juneteenth
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) – Chattanoogans came together to honor Juneteenth on Monday.
The Unity Group held their Juneteenth Parade along Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard.
A group of parade participants marching down Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard during Monday’s Juneteenth Parade.
The parade featured activist groups such as the NAACP, religious organizations like Unitarian Universalists, and dancers.
Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly also took part in the festivities.
Despite a little rain, the parade was completed.
One participant, Javian Radden, said, “We need a community back together, because usually in Chattanooga we have all of this violence going on, so I think it is a good idea to come out and celebrate Juneteenth today.”
When it reached Miller Park, the parade turned into the Freedom Day Gala.
There were vendors and multiple performers for attendees to enjoy.
With the festivities, many of those who participated want to emphasize the importance of the day.
Juneteenth is the commemoration of when the last slaves in Galveston, Texas, were told that the Emancipation Proclamation had been signed and the Civil War had ended.
For those who participated in today’s events, its meaning goes far beyond the date.
Another participant, Graciella Moore, said, “After President Abraham Lincoln had freed all the slaves two years earlier, that’s when they finally found out they were free in Texas. That’s what this day means to me. Celebrating our freedom, our total freedom.”
From the shores of Galveston to Chattanooga, Juneteenth’s representation of freedom still rang for parade attendees.
It is a day that has increased in visibility in recent years, becoming a federal holiday in 2021.
Additionally, the state of Tennessee officially recognized Juneteenth for first time as a state holiday.
This meant both state and federal offices were closed.
Attendees today want you to know this is more than just a day off.
Redden said, “Just all black people are free and aware, and not more black and white, it’s all the same color, and Juneteenth is everything. “
Allies also joined in to show their support for Chattanooga’s African-American community.
Another participant, Judith Pedersen-Benn, said, “As a white person and I look back on how slavery got ended, it’s a terrible thing that Texas lagged so far, but that this has been turned into a celebration, like we’re all free now.”
For many who were there today, they see the recognition of this day as just one more step to their ultimate goal.
Moore said, “A lot of things we consider free to most people, are not always free to us. So that’s the thing that I would like to see before I leave this Earth is that all people get the same rights, same justice, to be done to everyone.”
Juneteenth is the first day to be declared a federal holiday since Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
