Editor’s Observe: This text was written for Mosaic, an unbiased journalism coaching program for highschool college students who report and {photograph} tales underneath the steerage {of professional} journalists.
The sounds of chatter and gospel music stuffed downtown San Jose on June 14 as a whole lot of individuals celebrated Juneteenth. The annual pageant returned for its forty fourth 12 months, bringing collectively native musicians, Black-owned companies and neighborhood organizations for an occasion celebrating Black tradition and neighborhood.
“Juneteenth is a celebration for African American heritage,” Nadine Grundy, a enterprise vendor on the pageant, mentioned, including that it’s vital for folks to return out, have a good time “and revel in their roots and historical past.”
Grundy owns Creations of Shade, which sells objects akin to stationery, dwelling decor and drinkware embellished with vibrant illustrations of Black ladies. She mentioned her merchandise mirror her heritage. “I feel it’s vital that I’m in a position to come right here and share the issues that I do,” she mentioned.
Dozens of native Black-owned companies had been on the pageant, promoting merchandise like artisanal skincare, work and handmade jewellery. Muhammed Shuaibe, proprietor of clothes model Melanin Gang, which he based along with his spouse, goals to create clothes that uplifts folks and their communities.
“We do have a nonprofit group the place we feed the homeless and we give out free stuff,” he mentioned about his nonprofit, Give Again Gang, which gives meals throughout Ramadan and hosts workshops round psychological well being and wellness in Oakland. He mentioned with the ability to give again reminds folks of what they’re able to.
A couple of hours into the pageant, a crowd from the close by No Kings Day protest in opposition to President Donald Trump’s insurance policies and actions marched previous. Whereas the ambiance of the pageant stayed calm and celebratory, many attendees mentioned the protests resonated with them.
“Each of those occurring on the identical time may be very reflective of America,” mentioned Camile Creese, a pageant participant and scholar at San Jose State College. “We’re celebrating African American tradition whereas additionally making an attempt to keep up the inclusiveness that comes with being American, and the liberty that comes with our tradition.”
Juneteenth’s legacy of freedom and combating for African American rights was on the middle of 1 speaker’s discuss.
“We’re engaged in a fantastic constitutional disaster the place, if the unconstitutional voter rights act is adopted, we can have misplaced most of what we gained lower than 50 years in the past,” mentioned Marjorie Craig, chair of the San Jose NAACP, referring to the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility, or SAVE, Act that’s earlier than Congress. The invoice, which might require voters to current a delivery certificates or passport to register to vote, may impose extra boundaries to voters who don’t have entry to documentation.
“We stand right here, snug, with the ability to eat and drink what we need to drink, with the ability to talk, to specific our ideas, but when we don’t really feel the identical urgency that was felt then, we could lose all of that,” Craig mentioned. The NAACP civil rights group was based in 1909.
What resonated most importantly for a lot of attendees was the profound feeling of neighborhood on the pageant. San Jose has a Black inhabitants of three%, far smaller than the nationwide proportion of 12% and of close by cities akin to Oakland and San Francisco.
“With the ability to spend time with individuals who appear to be me, that’s vital,” mentioned attendee Davion Thomas, a San Jose native, including that there weren’t many different African Individuals in his highschool. “It’s superb to see us, particularly, come collectively.”
Creese, the school scholar, agreed. “It’s very good to see a bodily proof of neighborhood. There’s a way of camaraderie. I really feel like these are the sorts of issues that younger folks generally want — to actually really feel related with all people and to really feel safer throughout instances like this.”
Juneteenth is well known yearly on June 19 to commemorate the tip of slavery. It marks the day in 1865 when slaves in Galveston, Texas, realized that President Abraham Lincoln had freed them. Though San Jose’s Juneteenth within the Streets has been celebrated for greater than 4 many years, Juneteenth grew to become a federal vacation solely in 2021.
Padma Balaji is a member of the category of 2026 at Mission San Jose Excessive College in Fremont.
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