Adirondack groups mark Juneteenth holiday with weekend full of events
By Jak Krouse
Heads bobbed, feet tapped, and couples danced to celebrate Juneteenth at the John Brown Farm Historic Site on Sunday. Visitors had the opportunity to hear live music, take guided tours, experience a healing circle and munch hotdogs and chips outside.
Director of the Adirondacks Diversity Initiative Tiffany Rea-Fisher opened the event with a speech.
“Juneteenth is about resilience, persistence, commitment, and respecting the rights of all. Freedom to pursue life and happiness is not a day on a calendar but a way of life,” said Rea-Fisher, the great, great granddaughter of a slave.
“During this celebration, it is important to remember friends and family and to think about what legacy you want to leave and always remember to be kind to one another,” she said.
Juneteenth, a federal holiday since 2021, celebrates the ending of slavery for Black people in the United States of America. On June 19, 1865, nearly two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation was issued, the news of freedom reached African Americans in deep Texas.
Read the full article in the Adirondack Explorer.