ROCK HILL, S.C. — On the heels of the announcement that Juneteenth is now a federal holiday, the city of Rock Hill and Rock Hill Juneteenth are kicking off a weekend of celebrations.
Some may be just learning about the significance of the historic day, but for Willie Ware, this is a passion project stemming from more than 20 years.
"What we've been trying to do over a period of years is educate people what Juneteenth really is,” shared Ware, who is a Juneteenth Rock Hill board member.
This weekend’s events are kicked off by Rock Hill’s first Food Truck Friday since the start of the pandemic, followed by a historical marker ceremony at West End Elementary School – a Rosenwald School – and, plays by Rock Hill Theatre, as well as a virtual ceremony on Saturday evening.
Storyteller and author Carlo L’Chelle Dawson will read her poetry at the virtual event.
"It was an uphill battle to get people to understand that this is our history," Dawson said. "It's a shared history."
It's an uphill battle for a city where the Friendship 9 were arrested in the 1960s for sitting at a segregated lunch counter.
The fight for equality and justice continues to this day. Dawson, who has previously served on the Juneteenth Rock Hill board, even wrote a children’s book about Juneteenth titled ‘Why We Celebrate.’
This year, she’s grateful that we finally celebrate as a country.
“It’s a dream come true to see how far we’ve come in such a short period of time," Dawson said.
For more information on events, visit www.juneteenthrockhill.com.
Contact Indira Eskieva at ieskieva@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook and Twitter and Instagram.