Thousands of people headed to the Leimert Juneteenth Community Celebration in Los Angeles on Friday.
“Every single business in Leimert Park Village is black-owned, and so this is just a celebration of the beauty of blackness,” Kaya, one of the organizers, told KNX News’ Craig Fiegener.
Kaya added that there’s something for everyone - food trucks, music, a marketplace for vendors, and a kid zone.
“We're really proud to have produced a family-friendly event,” she said.
In 2020, then-President Joe Biden made Juneteenth a national holiday. But artist and teacher Desiree Davis told Fiegener that the celebrations have been happening for years and that events like the Leimert Juneteenth Community Celebration help to educate people on it.
“Juneteenth is in a way keeping the tradition and teaching history because I mean, I'm a school teacher, so I even know for myself firsthand most students are not going to pick up a book and find out what's Juneteenth about,” she said. “So actually having the events to educate and not just showcasing music and all the you know buying of the merchandise, but actually understanding the history of it and why we do it. I think that's important.”
For one festivalgoer, the event is all about unity.
“Unity means everything, and a lot of people forget that unity means that you come together to move forward, but if you don't come together, you can't move forward,” he said.
The festival is free to the public and ends at 7 p.m.
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