Tag: Juneteenth

Event: Longfellow House-Washington’s Headquarters Annual Juneteenth Gathering

Posted on by cambridgehistoricalcommission

Gather for Juneteenth to honor those who endured slavery and seized freedom on Brattle Street 250 years ago, their descendants, and the long history of Black freedom activism in Cambridge and beyond.

This free, all-ages event is marking its fourth year in 2025! Denise Washington (#Pop-Up Poetry Series), a descendant of Darby Vassall, has curated the Juneteenth Gathering at Longfellow House-Washington’s Headquarters NHS each year. Join us for the Juneteenth Gathering, A Denise Plays Hard Event, featuring speeches, poetry, music, historical displays, family activities, and refreshments. All are welcome!

Event Details

🎤12:30-1:00 PM DJ Steve Gousby
👋1:00-1:15 PM Welcome
🎶1:15-2:30 PM Juneteenth # Pop-Up Poetry, A Denise Plays Hard Event, including:

  • Drum procession – Chibuzo Dunun
  • Remarks and Libation – Edmund Barry Gaither (Director and Curator of the Museum of the National Center of Afro-American Artists)
  • The Black National Anthem, “Lift Every Voice and Sing” – led by Judge Milton Wright
  • Denise Washington & The #Pop-Up Poetry Ensemble: Akili Jamal Haynes, Lenny Bradford, Stephen O’Neal

2:30-3:30 PM

🎛️DJ Steve Gousby
👥Interactive history and family activities
🥤Catered refreshments
📋Partner/resource tables by the Enslaved Legacy History Coalition, Christ Church Cambridge, First Church in Cambridge, and History Cambridge
StoryWalk: Juneteenth for Mazie by Floyd Cooper

Event alert: Juneteenth Gathering!

Posted on by cambridgehistoricalcommission

Date/Location: Sunday June 16, 2024, Longfellow House-Washington’s Headquarters NHS, 105 Brattle Street (Rain location: Christ Church Cambridge, 0 Garden St)

Gather for Juneteenth to honor those who endured slavery and seized freedom on Brattle Street on the eve of the American Revolution, their living descendants, and the long history of Black freedom activism in Cambridge and beyond. This free, all-ages event will feature a community gathering with speeches by living descendants, Juneteenth # Pop-Up Poetry, A Denise Plays Hard Event; music, historical displays, family activities, and refreshments.

Event Details
🎤 12:30-12:50 PM Welcome speakers
🎶 12:50-2:00 PM Juneteenth # Pop-Up Poetry, A Denise Plays Hard Event, including:
Drum procession with Chibuzo Dunun
Libation + Lift Every Voice and Sing
Music + poetry, Denise Washington & Akili Jamal Haynes
🧺 2:00-3:00 PM
Interactive history and family activities
Catered refreshments
Partner/resource tables
Juneteenth StoryWalk

We hope to see you there!

Juneteenth in Cambridge

Posted on by cambridgehistoricalcommission

This weekend organizations across Cambridge are hosting celebrations and commemorations for Juneteenth. 2022 marks only the second year that Juneteenth has been recognized as a Federal holiday, but what is Juneteenth and why does it matter? In 1863, Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, an executive order declaring all enslaved people held in confederate states free. However, it wasn’t until June 19th of 1865 that federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas to announce and enforce their release. The day is now celebrated as the end of slavery in the United States, though there is still much left to be done. It’s a day to uplift African American voices, celebrate African American joy, and honor those who were robbed of their freedom and made to endure the inhumanity of American slavery. If you haven’t already made your own celebratory and/or commemorative plans, consider joining any of these many events happening right in our own neighborhood.

6/16 @ 12:15-1:30 pm Come to Joan Lorentz Park, 449 Broadway to catch a reggae performance by the Mystic Jammers

6/18 12-9:00 pm Catch a full day of activities from the Margaret Fuller House at 155 Harvard St. including yoga, a presentation on Joy in a historic Black Church in Cambridgeport by the Black History in Action for Cambridgeport (BHAC), and a Black Business Fair. They’ll be ending the evening with biking and skating at Hoyt Field.

6/18 @ 12-2:00 pm The Central Square Branch of the Cambridge Public Library will be hosting a Juneteenth celebration for all ages. There will be storytelling, music from the Albino Mbie Band, cupcakes, sidewalk chalk, and crafts. Visit the CPL events page for more details.

6/19 @ 3 pm The Cambridge Black History Project will be meeting at the Old Burying Ground at the intersection of Massachusetts Ave & Garden Street to honor and commemorate two African Americans buried there. Guests are welcomed to stand outside the gate to witness the ceremony.

6/19 @ 7:00 pm The Longfellow House and Museum of African American History have partnered to host a poetry reading and film screening of Jubilee Juneteenth and the Thirteenth. Learn more and register here.

6/20 @ 9-12:00 pm The Cambridge Families of Color Coalition and Starlight are hosting a parade at City Hall.

See the city’s Eventbrite page for more details and events!