Alum, former mayor who advocated for Juneteenth holiday to be recognized

During 14 years as a City of Bloomington elected official, including the last four as mayor, Mboka Mwilambwe ’94, M.S. ’96, sought to unite residents from different backgrounds through community events and shared spaces.

“I think hate really thrives on ignorance,” Mwilambwe said. “The more people have a chance to communicate and to understand each other’s culture, the less likely you’re going to see incidents of hate and things like that.”

Born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (then known as Zaire), Mwilambwe immigrated to the U.S. in 1990 to attend college, becoming a U.S. citizen in 2008. He chose to attend Illinois State University, where he earned two degrees (a bachelor’s in mathematics and a master’s in education) met his future wife, Stacey ’94, M.S. ’96; and began a nearly 30-year career.

Mwilambwe, an assistant director in Illinois State’s Office of Equal Opportunity and Access, also served as a Bloomington City Council alderman from 2011-21 and as Bloomington’s first Black mayor from 2021-25.

He is among three individuals, along with John H. Elliott and Chemberly Harris, who will be recognized for their community contributions during this year’s annual Juneteenth Community Celebration planned for Bloomington’s Miller Park on Saturday, June 21, 11:30 a.m.-5 p.m.

The recognition is fitting for Mwilambwe who, as an alderman in July 2020, proposed making Juneteenth an official City of Bloomington holiday.

“Officially recognizing Juneteenth was something that I was really proud of,” Mwilambwe said. “I pride myself on bringing about cultural events because I think that really helps people learn about each other as a community.”

Approved by the city council in October 2020, the annual holiday commemorates Juneteenth—June 19, 1865—the date that enslaved people in Texas learned of their freedom when Union Gen. Gordon Granger publicly read the Emancipation Proclamation order in Galveston, nearly three years after the proclamation was issued by President Abraham Lincoln.

The city partners with the Bloomington-Normal Black History Project to host the annual Juneteenth celebration at Miller Park, which features entertainment, education, community organization outreach, vendors, and food trucks.

“I thought we really needed to find a way to expand the celebration to the whole community so that everybody knows about it,” Mwilambwe said. “It’s an event that’s important for the African American community, and I think when you celebrate people’s culture, it makes everybody feel good, and that’s incredibly important.”

The son of a diplomat and international officer for UNICEF,  Mwilambwe had civic engagement instilled in him from an early age.

“I never really liked the idea of being in a community and not participating,” Mwilambwe said. He was a resident assistant in college, which Mwilambwe likened to being a mayor with a much smaller budget.

“It’s taking care of your community and trying to plan for how to address some of their concerns,” Mwilambwe said.

As an Illinois State employee, he served as an Administrative Professional (A/P) Council Academic Senate representative and as A/P Council chair. He joined local government in 2011 when he was appointed by former Bloomington Mayor Steve Stockton to fill a Bloomington City Council vacancy for which he was elected in 2013 and reelected in 2017.

In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic and a nationwide racial reckoning in the wake of George Floyd’s murder by a white Minneapolis police officer, Stockton, among others, encouraged Mwilambwe to run for mayor.

“They thought my personality and my approach to governing was what was needed,” Mwilambwe said.

When Mwilambwe was sworn in May 1, 2021, he became Bloomington’s first Black mayor in the city’s nearly 200-year history.

“It wasn’t until it happened that it actually dawned on me that, ‘Wow, this has never happened before,’” Mwilambwe said. “And I didn’t realize the magnitude of it until there were people in Congo, where I was born, who actually were excited and reached out to me. A family friend told me that he heard random people in a cab talk about a guy who was of Congolese origin and got elected mayor of a city in the United States, which made me chuckle. Then I also realized that it’s good for others because it shows that, yes, it can be done.”

As mayor, Mwilambwe said he encouraged civility among council members while valuing diverse and occasionally conflicting viewpoints.

“I think sometimes in politics, the tendency can be that if you have everybody who thinks in the same direction, then it’s more expedient,” Mwilambwe said. “But that may not lead to the best decision.”

Reflecting on his four-year term that ended in April after an unsuccessful reelection bid, Mwilambwe said he is proud of several city projects including the Bloomington Public Library renovation, the O’Neil Aquatics Center revitalization, increased investment in city infrastructure, and finally approving a plan for the Downtown Bloomington streetscape that future councils can work on executing.

Mwilambwe said he also prioritized maintaining public safety and parks—the “living room of a community”—while fostering a sense of belonging among Bloomington residents through cultural programming such as the Festival of Joy and the Juneteenth Community Celebration.

“People feel good about being recognized and being seen,” Mwilambwe said. “That, to me, is what these cultural events are all about, is making sure that people are seen and, at the same time, the rest of the community gets educated.”

Now out of city government for the first time in 14 years, Mwilambwe remains active on a statewide task force to support Black immigrants. He also serves on the Illinois Workforce Innovation Board.

Mwilambwe, who doesn’t anticipate a return to city government, is looking forward to attending this year’s Juneteenth Community Celebration as simply a citizen.

“It’s been really great,” Mwilambwe said. “We kind of provided a spark for the Juneteenth celebration, and since then, people have added their own creativity to things and made it even bigger.”