Troy University’s Rosa Parks Museum hosted its annual Juneteenth festival Saturday, with many vendors and performers noting the festival’s tenth iteration was special to them personally.
Juneteenth — which is observed annually on June 19 — is the oldest commemoration of the end of slavery in the U.S. It officially became a federal holiday when former President Joe Biden signed it into law in 2021.
As of May 9 of this year, when Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey signed House Bill 165 into law, Juneteenth is now officially an annual state holiday in Alabama
The festival included live performances, local vendors, and children’s activities.
Different Flavors of Dance, a dance group that has performed at every iteration of the festival since they’ve been a dancing crew, said the festival this year was about family for them.
“This performance meant a lot to us,” said Antonio Hayes, one of the members of DFOD. “We put a lot of thought into it to tell a story about how we have evolved over time and how we got here, not just as people, but us as a crew and as a family — Juneteenth this year was really about family to us.”
Music was an essential part of the festivities, with the event featuring performers who spotlighted R&B’s history, from covers of Stevie Wonder and Aretha Franklin, to more modern artists like the Black-Eyed Peas and John Legend.
“With us being dancers, music is our canvas,” said Marcus Smith, another DFOD member. “To see the expression on people’s faces when we dance … to bring that alive, it’s such a beautiful thing.”
Marcy Anderson, a specialty coffee supplier who was operating a pop up for International Coffee Line — which seeks to highlight unique coffee imported from a variety of African coffee farmers — said that she feels specifically connected to the significance of the date of Juneteenth because of the mission of her brand.
The date honors the day in 1865 when Union Major General Gorgon Granger landed in Galveston, Texas with his troops to deliver the news that everyone who was enslaved was free since the Civil War was over.
Anderson said that typically, people think of South America when they think of coffee, and she hopes to change this and honor the history of coffee with her brand by spotlighting farmers from Africa, since coffee was originally discovered in East Africa in the 15th century.
“This event is special to me because it’s a Black historical event. It’s our Fourth of July,” Anderson said. “I source from farmers not only out of Kenya and Uganda, but specifically Black farmers. It’s a regaining of agency over a commodity that most people have assumed to come from another continent entirely. It’s very special to me.”
More local events and celebrations are planned through June 21.
Sarah Clifton covers business for the Montgomery Advertiser. You can reach her at sclifton@montgome.gannett.com or follow her on X @sarahgclifton. To support her work, please subscribe to the Montgomery Advertiser.
