While this Saturday marked the first Juneteenth as a federal holiday, the Owensboro Black Expo gathered for their fourth annual celebration at Kendall-Perkins Park Saturday evening.
The holiday, which commemorates the end of slavery in the United States, is something that President of Owensboro Black Expo Dominique Maddox said is important.
“I mean we have been conditioned to celebrate the Fourth of July, but that was not for [Black people]; we weren’t free when that was written,” Maddox said.
On the day of the event, Maddox said she had been excited to celebrate. She said she was thinking about the joy that her ancestors had when they were declared free.
Black Expo was founded and exists to educate the community by celebrating and promoting black history, arts, and culture. Maddox is excited that Juneteenth is a national holiday and that she gets to experience the celebration, but she said that the fight for equality is not finished.
The celebration had vendors, inflatables, food, and small businesses for people to enjoy while enjoying the music and festivities. After the sunset, the crowd headed over to Fourth Street Baptist for a fireworks display.
Owensboro Black Expo aspires to unify the community with the event. When Maddox learned about the history of Juneteenth, she and other members of the organization wanted to take the lesson and share it with the community.
“We literally came upon the information just like everybody else does, but instead of keeping it to ourselves, we were like, ‘well Owensboro can celebrate this, and we can celebrate it together and learn together,’” Maddox said.
The event last year was completely altered due to the pandemic and became a Juneteenth parade. This year returned a sense of normalcy to the celebrations which continue to grow in size.
“When you have things like this — things that you can be proud of, things that you can be a part of — and when you invest in the community, they will surprise you and they will blow your mind,” Maddox said.
