Events commemorate Juneteenth holiday

Activities include music, art, food, culture, history

Columbus saw several Juneteenth celebrations Saturday, commemorating the end of slavery in the United States.

The first “Juneteenth on the Avenue“event was held along Mount Vernon Avenue between North 17th Street and Saint Clair Avenue.

The event was a collaboration between the King Arts Complex, Maroon Arts Group, the Columbus Urban League, Central Ohio African American Chamber of Commerce, Black Out and Proud, the King Arts Complex and Ohio History Connection.

The event included musical performances, food vendors and activities for children, as well as art exhibits featuring paintings, photographs and spokenword performances.

“The Near East Side of Columbus is home to great Black historical significance and Black cultural expression and production – the area, the buildings, they tell a story of the people, the culture, the art, struggle, economics and more,” said Jevon Collins, performing arts program director at the King Arts Complex. “Juneteenth offers us an opportunity to celebrate this rich history and tell new stories of freedom, liberation and oppression.”

Other events included the Juneteenth Ohio Festival at Genoa Park and a “Celebrating Freedom“event at Kelton House on Town Street.

PHOTOS BY BARBARA J. PERENIC/COLUMBUS DISPATCH Dancers from Thiossane Institute and Goree Drum and Dance come together in the street to open the first Juneteenth on the Avenue on Saturday along Mount Vernon Avenue.

Amina Wilson, 12, of Canal Winchester, spray-paints a sign during the first Juneteenth on the Avenue on Saturday along Mount Vernon Avenue in Columbus.

BARBARA J. PERENIC/COLUMBUS DISPATCH A temporary mural wall is decorated with graffiti art during the first annual Juneteenth on the Avenue on Saturday along Mount Vernon Avenue in Columbus.