Juneteenth celebration coming to Burlington on Saturday featuring range of performers

Burlington's Juneteenth celebration kicks off on Saturday with more than 50 performances by musicians, poets and comedians across a variety of venues in and around City Hall Park.

The festival, presented by Burlington's Racial Equity, Inclusion and Belonging Department and Northfield Savings Bank, starts at 11 a.m. and ends at 11 p.m. The Grammy-winning hip-hop group Arrested Development will perform on the Flynn Theater's Mainstage from 10-11 p.m. on Saturday. All performances are free of charge.

Other performances will take place at City Hall Park, Contois Theater, The Flynn Theater, lower Church Street, Burlington City Arts, Main Street and Amy E. Tarrant Gallery.

"I am very proud to be part of a city that celebrates Juneteenth's rich history and culture," Mayor Miro Weinberger said in a statement. "As we gather on this important day, let us also reflect on our collective responsibility to foster an environment of understanding, respect and equality for all Burlingtonians.

America's oldest celebration of emancipation

Juneteenth is America's oldest holiday celebrating Black Americans descended from the formerly enslaved, according to the REIB website. The city of Burlington expects more than 1,500 people to attend its celebration.

"Known as Emancipation Day, Freedom Day, and Jubilee Day, it has been celebrated by Black Americans since the late 1800s," the REIB website states. "The holiday commemorates June 19, 1865, when Union soldiers arrived in Galveston, Texas, and announced the end of slavery, two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation was issued."

Texas was the first state, in 1980, to recognize Juneteenth as a state holiday. Juneteenth became a federal holiday on June 17, 2021, in the wake of the police killings of several Black Americans, including George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, according to the Pew Research Center.

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The Pew Research Center found that while all 50 states and the District of Columbia commemorate Juneteenth, only 28 states and the District of Columbia − not including Vermont − recognize it as a public holiday, meaning state government offices are closed and state workers have a paid day off.

More Juneteenth celebrations around Vermont

Fairfax announced a Juneteenth Holiday Celebration on June 19, from 3-8 p.m. at the Fairfax Community Center, 1210 Main St., Fairfax. The celebration is sponsored by Fairfax Neighbors for Racial Equity, and promises "free food, gifts and ice cream."

Rokeby Museum in Ferrisburgh is having a Free Museum Day in honor of Juneteenth on June 19 with its exhibitions and buildings open free to the public. The museum is located just off U.S. 7 in Ferrisburgh on a farm owned for generations by the Robinsons family.

The second generation of the Robinsons in Vermont, Rowland and Rachel, were abolitionists and provided refuge to an unknown number of enslaved people seeking freedom from the 1820s to the 1840s, turning their farm into a stop on the Underground Railroad.

The National Historic Landmark includes the original farmhouse and outbuildings and Rokeby Museum, which tells the story of the Robinson's involvement in the anti-slavery movement and shares the history of all four generations of the Robinsons.

Clemmons Family Farm's free Juneteenth program on June 18 and June 19 is sold out, but the Charlotte farm holds the event every year. This year, 30 artists will tell stories, perform live music, and create art projects, in addition to other family friendly activities.

South Burlington's Juneteenth celebration will take place at 6:30 p.m. on June 19 in the auditorium at 180 Market St. There will be poetry by Major Jackson, music by Rachel Ambaye, and a reading of Frederick Douglass' 1852 speech, "What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?" by students from Frederick H. Tuttle Middle School. Community members will also have an opportunity to share their perspectives on Juneteenth.

Essex Junction's 3rd annual Juneteenth Celebration will be on June 18, from 1-3 p.m. at The Essex Experience Green, 21 Essex Way. There will be music and entertainment from Toussaint St. Negritude, DJ Cooper, and Harold Roudette. Jilib Jiblets and Suga Mama's Treats will provide the refreshments, "while we share quotes from notable African Americans and listen to reflections on the significance of the holiday."

Winooski is holding its Juneteenth celebration on June 18 in Rotary Park from 2-6 p.m. The celebration features African folk music, pop and jazz, with DJ Mitchell and a performance by A2VT. There will be storytelling by Ferene Paris Meyer, and a Juneteenth Storywalk by Winooski Memorial Library, titled "What It Means to Be Free: The True Story of the Grandmother of Juneteenth."

The Richard Kemp Center is hosting a Juneteenth Open House from 1-6 p.m. on June 17, featuring local Black artists, raffles and prizes and more. You can also get a first look at the Richard Kemp Center Wall of Black Vermont History. The music is described as "old-school R&B" and there will be food and drink. The Vermont Racial Justice Alliance will have a table at the event for those who want to learn more about their work.

Contact Dan D’Ambrosio at 660-1841 or ddambrosi@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @DanDambrosioVT. This coverage is only possible with support from our readers.

This article originally appeared on Burlington Free Press: Juneteenth celebration coming to Burlington's City Hall Park