Beckley, WV (WOAY) This Friday in Beckley, St. Paul Baptist Temple held their Juneteenth parking lot extravaganza, where families, vendors, and community members came together to celebrate this day of freedom.
Newswatch spoke with attendees and vendors enjoying the festivities. This is what many of them had to say about what the day means to them:
St. Paul Baptist Temple Assistant Pastor, Curtis Adams:
“It feels really good to see a lot of people out here because, you know, Juneteenth is important to African-Americans in general because it was finally, you know, what we call our Freedom Day… during any stage of civil rights, the church has been active or had an active role in the community. And… we wanted to be, you know, on the forefront of making sure that the church is still a place where the community can gather together.”
“I think that’s what this is about for us in terms of Juneteenth: just celebrating freedom, fun, and family. And when we talk about family, we talk about the entire community, not just those that we have by blood, but those that we choose.”
Raleigh County NAACP President, Tanisha Hughes:
“Juneteenth! Yay!!! Which, of course, celebrates the actual historical freeing of all of the slaves… It’s great to see our community come together to celebrate something that is so significant, not to just us, or black people, but to America. So it’s great to see everybody. You get to see everybody’s artistry, and everybody’s smiling, and it’s just full of love and celebration: it’s great!”
Lillie Lion Roaring Initiative Founder, Katrina Lillard:
“One of the best ways to celebrate our freedom is to come out and be with other like folks as [we are] able to support one another in the community. And of course, this is my church I attend, Saint Paul Baptist Temple, so I really love the fact that it was able to throw this and bring the community out for this event. It’s a great outcome!”
Summit Kollective Executive Director, Donald Burton:
“The end of slavery is what Juneteenth is about. And also just to celebrate together and bring all races, all colors together and just, you know, celebrate, you know, have a great time.”
Community organizer and activist Christina Baisden:
“We talk a lot about Independence Day as our July 4th, but we know that black people were not free on that day. It took a long time after that to break the chains of slavery… It’s important to our community as a whole because none of us are free unless all of us are free.”
2nd grader, Ezekiel (Age 7):
“I met a new friend. She asked me if I wanted to be her friend, and I said yes. And my sister said yes… Thank you, and God bless you all!”
