There was a party going on Saturday at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Park in Aurora, as thousands came together to celebrate Juneteenth.
Juneteenth – officially celebrated on June 19 – commemorates the end of slavery in the U.S. While President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation in January 1863, it wasn’t until June 19, 1865, that the last enslaved African Americans were freed in Texas after the end of the Civil War.
Beginning at 3:30 p.m. Saturday, the four-hour Juneteenth Freedom and Heritage Celebration in Aurora featured a variety of activities including a dance contest, storytelling, food and craft vendors, a three-on-three basketball tournament, live entertainment and more.
City officials said that over the years, the event has drawn upwards of 6,000 people. “Aurora co-sponsors this along with the African American Men of Unity and this is a wonderful time,” said Clayton Muhammad, the city’s chief communications and equity officer. He noted the festival celebrating Juneteenth in Aurora has been held for 23 years, “long before this became a federal holiday.
” “The commitment has been there from organizer Rick Rodgers, the president of the African American Men of Unity, and his team to really put this in an historical context,” he said. “It’s an opportunity for the Black community, in particular, to celebrate our legitimate independence from slavery.” Muhammad called the event “an annual reminder of where we came from and how far w.
