Tri-Cities Juneteenth Festival

Description

Your Kingsport Chamber and several local businesses and community volunteers are coming together to celebrate Juneteenth and EVERYONE is invited!

The Tri-Cities Juneteenth Festival is set for Saturday, June 18 starting at 10 a.m. and continuing until 9:00 p.m. The festival is happening at the VO Dobbins Community Center and includes an afternoon of kids’ activities and games, history sessions, food trucks, local vendors, and a full night of concerts featuring local and regional musicians and entertainers.

Juneteenth is the commemoration of the day in June 1865 when the news of the Emancipation Proclamation signed by Abraham Lincoln finally reached slaves in Texas.  This year’s theme celebrates Unity as a CommUNITY, recognizing that Juneteenth is about freedom for every person.

Tri-Cities Juneteenth Chair, Keira Majeed, took this year’s theme to heart when she enlisted the Kingsport Chamber for help planning this year’s event.  “In 2021, our enthusiasm got the best of us when African Americans in the Tri-Cities region held two Juneteenth events on the same day in Kingsport.  I felt strongly that had to change this year.  We needed to come together as one, which is why I asked my brothers and sisters from the Leadership Kingsport Class of 2022 if they would lend a hand to create a single, more impactful and far-reaching cultural experience that would go down in history as one of the best yet for our region. Our goal is to bring people together to celebrate the emancipation and liberation of our ancestors, to provide historical education about the Juneteenth holiday, and to highlight both African culture and the unique Affrilachian community that makes our region special.”

Vanessa Bennett, Executive Director of Operations and Talent Development at the Kingsport Chamber, said, “Keira’s vision for this year’s Juneteenth celebration had the makings of an excellent Community Impact Project for this year’s Leadership Kingsport Class.  And as a result, her fellow classmates rallied around the idea and have devoted not only time and resources to see the event continue to grow this year but also passion, historical expertise and incredible teamwork to ensure every member of the community feels included and welcome to participate.”

“I’m so excited about our celebration this year,” said Tanya Foreman, Education Initiatives Manager at Eastman and member of the Juneteenth Planning Team. “People of every color, culture and background in our community have come together to plan this event.  With one week to go before the actual event, we’ve already achieved so much.  When we all work together, we have a better understanding of our ancestors, our nation’s history, and how all of us are where we are today.  We’re also better humans, better neighbors, and better advocates for one another.”  Foreman also serves as Eastman’s chair of Connect, a global resource group dedicated to removing barriers to success for Eastman’s African American and black employees and being a force for good in the communities where Eastman operates. 

“A lot of people don’t realize that it took nearly three years for the enslaved people in Texas to learn of their freedom because we didn’t learn that when we were in school. We often look at the date of the Emancipation Proclamation as the end of slavery, but in reality, Juneteenth marks the end of slavery,” said Bennett. “We are honored to be part of this special event, and I’m appreciative for the collaborative support of our community to celebrate and acknowledge a date that is so significant for so many of us.”

Sponsors of the Tri-Cities Juneteenth Festival include Eastman, BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee, Christ Fellowship, Sync Space, First Horizon, Ballad Health, HOPE, KHRA and Move to Kingsport, Appalachian Community Federal Credit Union.

For more information about the Tri-Cities Juneteenth celebration, including line-ups and schedules, you can visit their Facebook page or email juneteenth@kingsportchamber.org.