It's time the celebration marking the end of slavery is designated as a national holiday, an organizer says.
By JON WILSON
Published June 16, 2004
ST. PETERSBURG - The day that marks the end of slavery in the United States should be a national holiday, says the organizer of the city's Juneteenth celebration.
As it is, the day sometimes lacks the recognition that might be expected of an occasion meant to celebrate the self-determination of a people, said Juneteenth organizer Jeanie Blue.
"Everybody's not educated. I still run into people occasionally who've forgotten. If it was a paid holiday, it would probably be more memorable," Blue said.
St. Petersburg's 13th annual Juneteenth celebration takes place this weekend. The centerpiece is a family festival Saturday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Campbell Park, 601 14th St. S.
The Juneteenth Pep Squad, comprising youngsters ages 5-13, will open the day by singing Lift Every Voice and Sing, James Weldon Johnson's Negro national anthem. Music, vendors, storytelling, facepainting and crafts are among the activities. Medical screenings are scheduled. Children will have a chance to make African masks.
A candlelight vigil to commemorate the Middle Passage - the leg of an Atlantic Ocean journey that transported slaves from Africa to America - is 7 p.m. Friday in north Straub Park downtown.
It is a low-key, spiritual occasion in which participants will throw flowers into Tampa Bay and ancestors' names will be called out, Blue said. Those who come are asked to bring candles and flowers.
"Any kind of flowers, as long as they're not plastic," Blue said.
The weekend concludes with a gospel music festival 4 p.m. Sunday at Bethel AME Church, 912 Third Ave. N. The Rev. Fleming Tarver and the Original Florida Spiritulaires are featured. Also present will be Diane Hughes of WRXB radio and her nursing outreach choir.
All events are free and open to the public.
Blue has directed St. Petersburg's Juneteenth celebration since it began. It is among about 20 in Florida. Celebrations are held in most states and in several foreign nations.
Juneteenth originated on June 19, 1865, in Galveston, Texas. It was on that date that African-Americans in and around Galveston received word of emancipation, even though President Lincoln had issued the Emancipation Proclamation two years earlier.
TO LEARN MORE
More information on the national scope of Juneteenth can be found on the Internet at www.juneteenth.com
