By Madeline Fuerstenberg, Community Reporter
June 19 marks the 154-year anniversary of the abolishment of slavery and the end of the Civil War in the United States
To celebrate this occasion, Uniting Bridges will host its 19thannual Juneteenth Day celebration next Wednesday, which will be open to the public at Carson Park’s Pine Pavilion beginning at 5:30 p.m.
Juneteenth Day commemorates the freeing of enslaved persons by Union soldiers in 1865, when Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger landed in Galveston, TX with the news that the Civil War was over. This holiday was established in order to celebrate freedom, the end of slavery in the U.S., racial unity and the extension of the U.S. Constitution to everyone.
Berlye Middleton, director of Uniting Bridges and a former member of the Eau Claire City Council, said in an email interview that Eau Claire’s Juneteenth Day celebration was born out of the necessity to bring Eau Claire residents together and teach people about different cultures, ethnicities and races.
“There is no better demonstrative way to show that Eau Claire is diverse and appreciates the positive contributions of all of its residents without regard to race or color,” Middleton said. “Except for the Martin Luther King, Jr. celebration, there is no community event like Juneteenth Day in Eau Claire.”
Middleton said Eau Claire is the third city in Wisconsin to host a community-wide Juneteenth Day Celebration, following Milwaukee and Madison.
“Its minority population pales in comparison with those larger cities, but its commitment to racial and cultural tolerance outpaces both,” Middleton said. “Even newer entries hosting Juneteenth, like Appleton and Green Bay, are seeing the benefits of a united community. But Eau Claire remains the model that others are attempting to emulate. Residents of Eau Claire should be proud that their attendance in this celebration continues to demonstrate our leadership in the state.”
Prof. Selika Ducksworth-Lawton, who is the African-American and military historian at UW-Eau Claire, has been an organizer of the Juneteenth Day celebration since 2009.
Ducksworth-Lawton said in an email interview that this year’s celebration will consist of its traditional picnic in the park with music, speakers and free food. Additionally, voter registration opportunities, community organizations and other “family friendly fun” will be featured at Wednesday’s event.
The keynote speaker of this year’s celebration is Sarah Ferber, associate director of Chippewa Valley Ex-Incarcerated People Organizing. The musical guest will be Irie Sol.
According to Ducksworth-Lawton, Uniting Bridges and its Juneteenth Day celebration are supported primarily by the City of Eau Claire and UW-EC. Other sponsors over time have included Target, Burger King, Indianhead Food, the Eau Claire Music School, the Chippewa Valley Museum, the Eau Claire YMCA, Chippewa Valley Technical College and the Eau Claire Area School District.
Last year, 410 people attended the Juneteenth Day celebration, Ducksworth-Lawton said.
“We are talking to community partners and want to have a community meeting about revamping the program and creating more community involvement,” she said. “We want to add more entities and have more groups with services and activities come out.”
Ducksworth-Lawton said it is her hope that Juneteenth Day reminds people of what African-American people have accomplished throughout U.S. history, despite facing many obstacles. She said it is vital to recognize that freedom is for everyone and racial unity is important.
All of our citizens are important and necessary for the strength of our community and our country,” Ducksworth-Lawton said. “We need to build our local communities together, and Juneteenth leads us to the inclusion and shared vision of excellence that we need.
“I think that the Juneteenth and MLK Celebrations show the best of how the community, government and private sector can work together to create a strong community and lead our state and our nation through divisiveness and toward a shared vision of American values,” she added.
Middleton he would like to see the “remnants”of Juneteenth Day evident every day. In the future, Middleton said he would like to see more community involvement with the planning of the Juneteenth Day celebration, as well as an increased involvement with the local schools. He also said he hopes Uniting Bridges can become a “community resource incubator” for other emerging organizations with a focus on community diversity.
“I hope that people take away the inspiration and drive to become involved, stay involved or become m ore involved in our community on an active level,” Middleton said. “Their mere attendance at the celebration is action, and for that, I’m grateful.”
If you liked this story, please remember there were costs involved in producing it. We have no paywall, and you don’t need a subscription to see what’s on our website.
Instead, we rely on our readers to help us meet the costs of reporting community news and information you often won’t find elsewhere. An annual CVPost membership is $50, but contributions of any amount also matter. Please consider helping community supported journalism survive by clicking the Donate button below.