This past Tuesday, Rolling Prairie apartments were the site of the first ever Juneteenth Celebration to be hosted in Sun Prairie.
Sankofa Educational Leadership United and Sistahs of African Descent got together to bring a unique way of celebrating Juneteenth to one of Dane County’s fastest-growing cultural touchstones. This year has seen an expansion of Juneteenth celebrations around the Madison area, including a full week’s worth of events in Madison.
“It was very special,” Jalateefa Joe-Meyers, one of the event’s organizers, told Madison365. “Many of the children had no idea what Emancipation Day was or what Juneteenth was. They had so many questions and learned so much. They really enjoyed themselves. Everyone did. It was the first annual here. We will definitely do it again.”
Juneteenth celebrates the date of June 19, 1865, when Union troops occupied Texas, which had not participated in the Civil War, and Union General Gordon Granger read the Emancipation Proclamation out loud informing all African Americans that they were free. The slaves in that region were the last to gain knowledge of their freedom.
Sankofa Educational Leadership United helps families and educational institutions address achievement gaps for students, works to remove barriers to academics and provides services to schools to help with mental health, nutrition, behavior and overall wellness.
Sankofa, which is an African word from Ghana, was the evening’s theme. Sankofa is derived from the words San, which means Return, Ko (go) and Fa (look, seek, and take).
The celebration, which lasted most of the evening, was rich in African culture, music and food. Andreal Davis, a member of the Sistahs of African Descent, read a Harriet Tubman poem titled “Wasn’t meant to be no slave” and delivered a soaring rendition of the John Legend song “Wake Up.” Davis also led the performing of the Black National Anthem set to music performed by Sidney Nolan.
As is customary with many Juneteenth celebrations, the evening included a time for all the participants to form circles to talk about any number of topics. At the Rolling Prairie event, the topics were split into three parts: People were asked to talk about what, in today’s time, do people still need liberation from; Asked to recognize that everyone in the room has power, the power to act; And each person shared one thing that was in their sphere of influence to support the African American community.
Topics like education, the criminal justice system, disproportionate minority incarceration, police brutality and economic equity were the areas most on people’s minds when they looked at the state of things in the African American community and the things people most needed continued liberation from.
The first annual Sun Prairie Juneteenth celebration was a special chance for kids and other members of the community to not only have a good time but also learn about important events in Black history.
