Juneteenth Celebration in Altadena (Photos – mtn-view.com, kent.edu)
Coming June 19th, in the City of Roses at the Foothills, lovingly known as the “Dena”, an All Day Juneteenth Celebration event is taking place: An occasion where Liberation, Honoring Black Culture, Past & Future, intersect to cultivate community.
By Rhonda Shorter
At the start of the all-day Juneteenth celebration, we will pay homage to the extraordinary legacy of Ellen Garrison Clark, a Black female civil rights activist and educator. This Celebration of Ellen Garrison Clark, hosted by the Altadena Historical Society, will take place at the Mountain View Mortuary at 11:00 am on June 19. The event will be live-streamed and can be viewed on YouTube.
Next, the day of celebration continues at the Juneteenth Festival at the Altadena Grocery Outlet parking lot from 11:00 am – 5:00 pm, hosted in community with Rhythms of the Village and local community members. There will be performances, delicious food, vendors, music, and more at the festival. With the intention of bringing the entire community together, this is an inclusive opportunity for all, honoring the past, and celebrating the future in order to unite and empower the people.
The Celebration will end with a Juneteenth Freedom March and Block Party hosted by My Tribe Rise, a nonprofit organization with a compassionate mission; focused on police transformation, addressing food insecurity, economic injustice, solutions to end gang violence, and creating opportunities for peace. This culmination will take place at Charles White Park. There will be live music, dancing, food, Liberation Speakers, games, guided meditations, poetry, art and more! (For more information email: Peace@MyTribeRise.com).
All-Day Celebration line-up
- 11:00 am – 12:00 pm – Ellen Garrison Clark Celebration, Mountain View Cemetery
- 11:00 am – 5:00 pm – Juneteenth Festival, Grocery Outlet
- 5:00 pm – 9:00 pm – Juneteenth Block Party, Charles White Park
The community is invited to celebrate in the spirit of UBUNTU, which means, I am because of who we all are. In African philosophy, Ubuntu is said to include values such as respect, dignity, value, acceptance, sharing, co-responsibility, humaneness, social justice, fairness, personhood, morality, group solidarity, compassion, joy, love, fulfillment, and conciliation. As one of the organizers said: “Show up for our community, our legacy, as we bridge our future with our powerful past.”
We must uplift as we climb! – Ellen Garrison Clark
Rhonda Shorter is CEO of Crack-N-Pop Gourmet Popcorn, a business that started out of her kitchen in Pasadena. She loves her city and her community.
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