As she watched her fellow Gary residents march to Roosevelt Park, Sharron Maxwell couldn’t help but get emotional.
“I thank God for this day,” Maxwell said. “I thank God that he delivered us on June 19. … We are all one as citizens of the United States. We are one, and we love each other — no matter what color.”
Maxwell — along with her husband, Ronald Woods — participated in the Black Labor Week Project and Gary Common Council’s Juneteenth celebration at Roosevelt Park Friday. The event started at 11 a.m., but some participants walked in a 10 a.m. Juneteenth Remembrance Walk for Idella Grigsby-Figgures, a lifelong Gary resident who died in 2004 and was president of the African American Liberation Parade and Juneteenth Day.
Juneteenth, which is every June 19, is a federal holiday that celebrates the emancipation of all enslaved people in the U.S., according to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. It marks the day in 1865 when union troops arrived in Galveston, Texas to enforce the freedom promised by the Emancipation Proclamation, which was signed by President Abraham Lincoln in January 1863.
Chair of the Indiana Black Legislative Caucus and state Rep. Earl Harris, Jr., D-East Chicago, said in a statement Friday that Juneteenth hasn’t always been as widespread of a celebration as it is now. He called the holiday “a stark reminder” that no one is free until everyone has freedom.
“This is especially important this year,” Harris said in his statement.
Harris said many are struggling to feel celebratory with the state of the U.S., and it’s easy to feel defeated when watching the “nation regress so much in terms of civil liberties” and protections for marginalized people.
“This Juneteenth, it’s worth recognizing that African Americans throughout the last 250 years have fought to improve the United States for themselves, their families and future generations, and now, we must continue the work,” Harris said. “It’s never an easy task, but it is a necessary one to ensure we leave behind a stronger nation than we inherited.”
Gary’s free Juneteenth celebration took place from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Roosevelt Park. It featured Black arts and crafts, food vendors, face painting, kids’ activities and live entertainment.
Clarence Thornton, president of Gary’s Black Labor Week Project chapter, said this year was the group’s first event.
“We just want to give back to the community and give ourselves more of a presence,” Thornton said. “When people come here today, we want them to celebrate Juneteenth and what it really means, especially in today’s times.”
Leena Samuel, treasurer for Gary’s chapter of the Black Labor Week Project, helped plan Friday’s Juneteenth event. Samuel said Friday’s celebration was a success, and she was happy to see people gather to celebrate and learn about the holiday.
Samuel hopes that, while people participated in the activities, they also acknowledged the history of the holiday and paid tribute to Black Americans.
“Juneteenth, to me, means freedom,” Samuel said. “It gives me hope to see so many people out here and that means there is hope for our kids and our future.”
Ebony Parker, a Gary resident, participated in the walk and was one of the event’s vendors. She had a booth for his business, Front to Back Design and Printing, and she sold t-shirts, bags and flags that people could use to celebrate Juneteenth.
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Parker, who’s also a member of the Black Labor Week Project, said she felt great seeing people from the community come together to celebrate Juneteenth.
“For us to have never done this before, I’m pretty satisfied,” she added.
Ephrin Jenkins, founder of the Black Labor Week Project, said he created the organization 15 years ago to display parallels between the labor movement and Black community. The organization’s goal is to teach the surrounding community about the history and importance of Black labor.
For Jenkins, Juneteenth means everything to him. The history of the holiday is something people shouldn’t forget, and he says it shapes his activism.
He hopes that people can use Juneteenth as inspiration to continue fighting for Black issues, including the neglect of the educational system and resources going to Black communities.
“I want to organize and bring people together so we can actually go back and solve these problems together,” Jenkins said. “Not just individually, but together.”
Gary resident Marilyn Joplin needed to pause before she thought about Juneteenth’s meaning to her. She participated in Friday’s remembrance walk before shopping at various vendors at Roosevelt Park.
As she celebrated, Joplin wore a t-shirt featuring Opal Lee, or “the grandmother of Juneteenth,” according to the National Women’s History Museum. She’s an activist in the movement to make Juneteenth a federal holiday, which happened on June 17, 2021.
Joplin said she wants everyone to recognize the work of Lee.
“It’s important for us to keep this history going,” Joplin said. “If you don’t know where you came from, you won’t know how to enjoy your life going forward. … I want to keep it going for generations and generations, for them to understand the sacrifices that were made.”