OCOEE, Fla. – Now a national holiday, people across the country commemorate Juneteenth on June 19, when some of the last slaves in the U.S. were informed they were free in 1865.
In Central Florida, even with the scattered showers, hundreds of people came out from across the metro Saturday to celebrate freedom.
At Bill Breeze park in Ocoee, there was fun, food and tons of vendors on hand — including many Black-owned businesses — to celebrate Juneteenth despite the on-and-off rain.
“To be in Texas and not even know you’ve been emancipated, it’s really something, and to be able to celebrate this, it’s a good thing,” said Donnell Cooper, owner of Love Those Hot Dogs.
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The festival in Ocoee was hosted by state Sen. Geraldine Thompson, state rep. LaVon Bracy Davis and many other community partners, all to remind people about the importance of learning their history.
“It’s important to be in Ocoee on Juneteenth to say that, yes, we’ve had some trials, but we are celebrating our triumphs today,” Thompson said.
This Juneteenth festival happens in a city that’s seen racism and segregation, including the Ocoee massacre in 1920 when dozens of Black men were killed by a white mob for trying to exercise their right to vote. In 2020, more than 100 years later, Ocoee city leaders signed an apology letter recognizing the tragic day.
“A lot of things have been obscured, swept under the rug, and now people are coming forward to say ‘We claim what happened, we want to apologize, make amends, and we want to move forward,’” Thompson said.
Meantime, the Buffalo Soldiers Motorcycle Club of Orlando was also on hand, helping to share stories of freedom.
“Buffalo soldiers were also used to actually send the word out to the slaves that emancipation had changed and they were actually free,” Manny McDuffie said. “Don’t let their sacrifices and things they did go in vain.”
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