Dozens of people gathered at Rotary Hill in Naperville on Saturday for the city’s annual Juneteenth celebration, organized by Naperville Neighbors United.
Community gathers for food, music, and reflection
The event was filled with food, live music and lots of dancing.
Multiple speakers addressed the crowd, reflecting on the significance of the celebration, including Naperville City Council member and co-founder of NNU, Benny White.
In a diverse community like Naperville, White says events like the Juneteenth celebration allow people to connect and learn from each other.
“Just because we’re diverse doesn’t necessarily mean we know enough about each other…So I think that what we discovered is that we have to be intentional about getting to know different people,” said White. “If not, we’ll just end up going off of stereotypes…And you actually don’t get out and have a chance to meet each other. So, when we started our organization, Naperville Neighbors United, it gave us that opportunity to really try to help bring the community together.”
Juneteenth, which falls on June 19, marks the end of slavery in the U.S. It celebrates that date in 1865, when Union troops freed enslaved African Americans in Galveston Bay and across Texas, two years after Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation.
Celebrating freedom and progress in the community
Among those in attendance at Saturday’s celebration was Illinois Rep. Lauren Underwood, who discussed the importance of commemorating the day.
“This is the community I grew up in, the community I live in now, and I think it’s really important to be able to show up for these types of gatherings, particularly in honor of Freedom Day,” said Underwood. “I first moved to Naperville during a time when this was unimaginable, so the fact that we can have an annual celebration as big and vibrant and joyful as this one is a marker of progress even in these dark days.”
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