Use this search box to find articles that have run in our newspapers over the last several years.
Date: 6/2/2022
ENFIELD, CT – The Ujima African American Alliance will have their first Juneteenth Festival on June 19 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on the Enfield Town Green.
The day’s events vary from entertainers, representatives’ speeches, as well as poetry readings. Dancers, drummers and stilt walkers are scheduled to perform to entertain the crowd. Enfield Mayor Robert Cressotti will be present, and state Rep. Tom Arnone will be speaking. Hartford’s First Poet Laureate Frederick-Douglass Knowles II will be reading poetry, in addition to Nzima Sherylle Hutchings, author/poet, board member and cultural literary arts educator and adviser of Ujima will particpate in the festival by sharing poetry.
Secretary Melissa Woodyard said of the event, “It’s going to be a day of fun, learning and community.”
The Ujima African American Alliance is a grassroots organization that works on engaging, educating and inspiring African Americans as well as the community at large. The word ujima means collective work and responsibility, building the community together and solving problems as a group. They work with the public schools, the Enfield Public Library and other nonprofit organizations in Enfield and throughout Connecticut.
Chairman Chad Woodyard shared, “This is the first Juneteenth event we’re doing, and this is the first one ever in Enfield, so it’s an historical event for the town.”
Juneteenth is short for June 19. It is considered the longest-running African American holiday and has been called America’s second Independence Day. On Jan. 1, 1863, news of the Emancipation Proclamation had taken effect as all enslaved people in Confederate States were declared legally free. However, not everyone in the Confederate territory would immediately be free. Though the Emancipation Proclamation was made effective in 1863, it could not be implemented in places still under Confederate control. It wasn’t until 1865, after the 13th Amendment passed, that the Emancipation Proclamation became national policy. When Union soldiers arrived in Galveston, Texas on June 19, 1865, Union Army General Gordon Granger announced that the more than 250,000 enslaved Black people in the state were freed by executive decree. This day would be known as “Juneteenth” by the newly free people in Texas. Juneteenth officially became a federal holiday on June 17, 2021.
With the Juneteenth event, Ujima is looking for more vendors – people that are willing to come and take part on that day.
“We want this festival to be a real cultural extravaganza,” said Hutchings. “We want our network to work. We want people to know who we are and where we are, so we can continue to build our network on all fronts. Through this event, we’re showcasing unity, culture, character, excellency and inclusiveness.”
To learn more information about Ujima African American Alliance visit their website at uaaaenfield.org, email uaaaenfield@gmail.com or follow them on Facebook.