One City to host second annual Juneteenth celebration next weekend

This year marks the 156th year since the end of slavery in 1865, and One City in Cape Girardeau wants to celebrate.

On June 19, One City will host its second annual Juneteenth celebration from 5 to 8 p.m. on its premises in downtown Cape Girardeau. The event will include food trucks, educational displays and a market featuring goods made by local Black vendors.

Juneteenth commemorates the day in 1865 when Union Army Gen. Gordon Granger arrived in Texas after the civil war and told slaves they were free.

"We want everybody to come out and celebrate with us," MaKenya Owens, One City's work life and community coordinator said.

The day will include a "food alley" with eats from local makers and two food trucks, including Sno Crabz crab truck. Twenty-eight local vendors, ranging from the African Culture Collective to Umpkins Beauty Supply, will set up shop. Arts Council of Southeast Missouri will organize a mural for patrons to paint on.

One City hosted its first Juneteenth celebration last year. It was a huge success, according to Owens. More than 350 people attended. She expects to see more this year.

While Juneteenth is a day of celebration, it's also a day of reflection, Owens said. She hopes the event will be both fun and educational.

"It's not just come out and have a big barbecue," Owens said. "We want to bring people who aren't familiar with Juneteenth into the fold and show them what the culture is really like and allow them to be a part of it."

A reading about the history of Juneteenth will be held in tandem with a poetry reading from original slave texts. Pat Thompson-McBride, president of the local chaper of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored people, will speak.

One City will also set up a resource table including African-American-written books and literature free for the taking. Owens encourages anyone to take a book and return it to One City's Free Little Library installed at the corner of Independence and Frederick Streets.

One City is a faith-based organization with a mission to unite all people in Cape Girardeau, regardless of racial, socio-economic or cultural backgrounds.

"God loves everybody the same, and that's the message we really want to get across through One City," Owens said. "Community is about us empowering each other and supporting and loving everybody the same."

One City is looking for at least 20 volunteers to help maintain the event, Owens added.

For more information, contact One City on its Facebook page.