The city of Pine Bluff celebrated Juneteenth with music, festivities, food and fun on Saturday, transforming Main Street into a jubilee where many performers took center stage.
Juneteenth, an annual celebration commemorating the day when the last enslaved African Americans were informed that they were free, is now an official federal holiday, signed into law Thursday by President Biden.
June 19, 1865 -- 2½ years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed by President Abraham Lincoln to end slavery -- is when the enslaved people in Texas found out they were free from slavery.
"We're moving in the right direction for them to recognize such a momentous day as a federal holiday after so many years," Mayor Shirley Washington said. "I think it's a sign that we are moving in the right direction to coming together in unity."
The Juneteenth Festival, held in downtown Pine Bluff, revisited those times and the journey to where the nation is today.
The Rev. Matt Mosler gave the invocation, and visitors were welcomed and greeted by Warren Booker, Kevin Crumpton and Washington.
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Jordan Sims gave the history of Juneteenth and why it is celebrated.
Juneteenth is a celebration of culture and freedom and has been celebrated by African Americans since the late 1800s.
According to Juneteenth.com, Juneteenth celebrations were continued annually by descendants of the men and the women who had been enslaved by praying together and celebrating with families.
The Reed family presented the "Story of the Quilts," which took the audience on a journey through time from the Underground Railroad to George Floyd's cry for his mother before his last breath, with quilts representing the path.
Spoken-word artists, musicians, dance teams, rappers and singers celebrated the National Independence Day historically known as Jubilee Day, which is also special to Washington because it falls on the birthday of her late mother, who would have turned 101-years-old.
"I think everyone feels the transition even though there's still a way to go," Washington said. "We're not there yet, but we are at least moving in the right direction."
With temperatures reaching over 90 degrees, the celebration continued across Martha Mitchell Expressway where charter buses were transporting hundreds of people throughout the day to and from the Regional Park amphitheater for the Go Forward Pine Bluff Forward Fest Juneteenth edition, which kicked off at noon.
The humidity didn't stop people from parking their lawn chairs under a shade tree as live music blared through the speakers.
Patrons said they enjoyed the musical performances and the variety of food offered by food-truck vendors.
A kids' zone featured a row of bounce houses, and free popsicles were given out to all attendees.
The event was free to attend.
The festival returned for its third year, though it had to cancel festivities last year because of the pandemic.
"We've decided to do the concert free this year coming off of covid year, not necessarily knowing what all the hardships were, especially with the water crises," Go Forward CEO Ryan Watley said, adding that the festival usually involves a $10 ticket because of the celebrity of artists that perform.
Kicking off at 2 p.m. was The On-Call Band followed by Karen Wolfe at 3 p.m., Heather Gillis at 4 p.m., Dexter Allen at 5 p.m., B.B. King Blues Band at 6 p.m., PC Band at 7 p.m., Ana Popovic at 8 p.m., Bigg Robb at 9 p.m. and Tweet at 10 p.m.
