CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) - Friday marked the 155th anniversary of the Juneteenth holiday, honoring the end of slavery in the United States. Multiple organizations and local government leaders came together Saturday in Iowa City to organize a day of celebration.
After weeks of marches in Iowa City, calling for an end racial injustice and lifting the visibility of the Black Lives Matter Movement, there was time to celebrate Saturday.
“After everything going on in the county, from the murder of George Floyd, we thought this is a really important event for now and it has to happen,” Mazahir Salih, with the Iowa City City Council said.
Salih helped organize the event. She said besides celebrating the end of slavery, the event also gives the chance to educate.
“There is a woman that just came by and she said are you guys selling food? We said no. Is this a pride parade? We said no. She said, what is this? We said, Juneteenth, she said what is that and we started talking about Juneteenth,” Salih said.
Hundreds of people made their way to the Pentacrest at the University of Iowa to hear speeches before a march through downtown. In the crowd, an Iowa City family who said this was their first time celebrating the holiday. They said it was their young daughter Brooklyn, who motivated them to come out.
“The last few weeks have brought up a lot of conversations that we have avoided or not wanted to have, it’s kind of forced us to have them,” Elliott Poma, Brooklyn’s father said.
“Brooklyn is kind of an incredible person that forces our hand a little more than we would normally be comfortable with. We might not have come down here, but she wants to know more and learn more so that has been really important for us and we want to make sure we give her that opportunity,” Alyse Riley, Brooklyn’s mom said.
The celebration came together in only a few days. Organized by local government leaders, Iowa Freedom Riders, and other groups. They said donations from area businesses and private citizens poured in to provide free food and games - signaling a change after weeks of pleas.
“We have people on board, people are supporting the change, supporting Black Lives Matter, when you see a lot of people coming out that means we have a lot of support in the community which is really makes me excited that the change could happen soon,” Salih said.
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June 21, 2020 at 10:42AM
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Juneteenth celebration draws crowd in Iowa City - KCRG
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