Winooski celebrates Juneteenth

WINOOSKI, Vt. (WCAX) – Downtown Winooski is buzzing Wednesday night as part of the community’s celebration of Juneteenth.

“As a member of the Black community, it’s important to me to honor the end of enslavement, resistance to oppression, liberation, joy,” said Eliana Castro of St. Albans.

Juneteenth marks the day in 1865 when the news of the Emancipation Proclamation reached Galveston, Texas, freeing hundreds of thousands of enslaved people. While the event took place 159 years ago, the federal holiday is only three years old.

It’s been a year of policy changes in Vermont that celebrate Black identity and culture. Governor Phil Scott proclaimed June 19th as Juneteenth recognition day. And next month, it will become illegal in Vermont to discriminate based on hair thanks to the Crown Act.

“It’s sad that it has to come to this, that there needs to be a law in place. And it’s awesome that I can walk into a workplace with my Bantu knots and not be afraid that I’m going to lose a job because of it,” said Esther Charlestin, a Democratic candidate for governor.

And yet some Black Vermonters say their community needs to do more to make the state a place where more Blacks want to come and stay, especially after traffic stops of Black drivers rose slightly in Burlington compared to years past.

“There’s work that needs to be done across the entire criminal justice system — housing, education, employment, health services, economic development, transportation, the whole nine yards,” said Mark Hughes with the Racial Justice Alliance. He says the legacy of slavery — and ending systematic racism — won’t happen overnight or with a holiday.

Others say while we celebrate the liberation of the enslaved, remember the shift toward a more perfect union begins within all of us. “The way you look at people, the way you judge people’s behavior. And if you’re tone-policing your coworkers, just you know the everyday ways that you can make life more tolerable to people living in a racialized world,” Castro said.

There are a number of activities taking place Wednesday night in Winooski including performances from Black artists, and a local Black makers marketplace.