SANTA CRUZ — Community members from around Santa Cruz County skipped, danced, and paraded down Pacific Avenue in downtown Santa Cruz Saturday from City Hall to the London Nelson Community Center in celebration of Juneteenth, officially recognized Wednesday.
“When I was asked to be grand marshal, it put me in tears,” said local purveyor of peace Curtis Reliford. “I had been running around listening to the negative people, and when I got the call to lead the parade, it was like I stepped into the light. It just woke me up. It’s an honor and a privilege.”
As grand marshal of this year’s parade, Reliford set the pace for the groovy march, which started with about 30 community members outside Santa Cruz City Hall and grew to about 50 as the parade made its way down Pacific Avenue with passersby waving, high-fiving and bursting into spontaneous dance to the “Saints Go Marching In,” being played by the parade’s Second Line Band. Reliford donned a black tux with a white top hat as he danced through downtown, American flag in hand, leading the parade of community members to the London Nelson Community Center.
When the parade arrived there, the smell of barbecue already permeated the air, with food vendors lining Washington Street such as My Mom’s Mole and Spontaneous Confections and the barbecue crew from Word of Life Church, who were hosting a fundraiser.
Juneteenth National Independence Day has been celebrated in the United States since 1866 and in Santa Cruz for more than three decades. Although slavery was abolished in the United States with the ratification of the 13th Amendment in December 1865, the last state to accept the prohibition of slavery was Texas, which occurred June 19, 1865. The first Juneteenth was celebrated the next year.
The holiday, also known as Emancipation Day and originally called Jubilee Day, was recognized as an official federal holiday in 2021 and commemorates the emancipation of enslaved Black Americans and celebrates Black culture. Local residents and siblings, Ana Elizabeth and David Claytor, of SureThing Productions, have been co-producing the Santa Cruz Juneteenth events based at the London Nelson since the 1990s and the local community cookout celebrated the 33rd Juneteenth Saturday.
Elizabeth gave some opening remarks and introductions at the celebration in Laurel Park, outside of the London Nelson Community Center, named after the eponymous icon of Santa Cruz history who willed his property to the city of Santa Cruz in the 19th Century.
Longtime local lyricist Isaac Collins, who wouldn’t be performing until Saturday evening at the Crepe Place for the “Diggin in the Crepe” event, in honor of Juneteenth, was happy to simply be enjoying the performances in the park.
“I have been coming out to Juneteenth for 18 years,” said Collins, who helped pull Reliford’s “peace cart” during the parade. “I am not performing this year but I am not caring because it’s not always about being on stage. Sometimes it’s about being behind the scenes. It’s nice to enjoy the other side of it, the good music and seeing people come together.”
The event featured a slate of local and Bay Area performers such as Prezident Brown, Tammi Brown and Mak Nova & the Homies, among others. The event also featured a basketball contest, art vendors and the crew from Hip Hop Pop-up, who organized the hip-hop showcase in honor of Juneteenth at the Crepe Place where Collins would later perform.
“Obviously hip-hop culture is rooted in Black culture and Black consciousness and that’s greatly informed my worldview,” said local artist and organizer of “Diggin in the Crepe,” Khan. “So we’re here honoring the culture and representing hip-hop culture in an authentic grassroots way, not in a commercial way.”
Santa Cruz resident Julia Butterfield was enjoying the live music in Laurel Park after grabbing some food , her favorite part of the annual event.
“I come every year and get cornbread and greens,” said Butterfield. “And it’s just good to get out. I was just sitting in my house thinking about Gaza, so I thought I’d put the news behind me and go dance a little.”
Young Santa Cruz residents Isis Yao and Aryeh Koontz were hanging out in Laurel Park with their friend from the Bay Area, Sika Sena-Akoto, and enjoying some watermelon salad under the shade of the trees. Although Koontz said he was just there for the food, Yao said that she enjoys the gathering of people the most.
“I have been coming here every year since I was little so it’s a tradition for me,” said Yao. “I like the community and seeing everyone.”
“I haven’t been to this before so I didn’t know what to expect but there’s a great sense of community here that you don’t always feel in your everyday life,” added Sena-Akoto. “And Juneteenth means exactly that, coming together to be a community.”
