On June 28, Greenport Village will host its second annual and official Juneteenth Celebration and Parade. The first, which took place last year, was in response to Juneteenth becoming a federally-recognized holiday. As a result, many Americans now know that June 19, 1865 is the day when Union General Gordon Granger went to Galveston, Texas to announce the end of slavery — two years after the Emancipation Proclamation. This is a day that has been celebrated by African Americans ever since, and gives full meaning to life, liberty and justice for all.
The Clinton Memorial AME Zion Church in Greenport has long celebrated Juneteenth —but it was not until recently that a seed was planted to invite all community members to join in the celebration. The Southold Anti-Bias Task Force helped organize events in the past, and in 2023, Coming to the Table — a national group dedicated to racial healing — joined in the planning.
Reverend Natalie Wimberly, along with Reverends Margaret Cowden and Donna Schaper and community members Carolyn Peabody, Sylvia Daley and Liz Welch began meeting monthly to discuss the importance of racial healing as a way to address the psychological, emotional and relational wounds caused by racism and systemic discrimination in this country and within our own North Fork community, with the goal of building trust and healthy relationships across racial lines.
Soon, our steering group grew to include Valerie Shelby, Megan Bowles and Nicki Gohorel, all of whom take turns to facilitate monthly meetings, which take place the second Monday of each month at 6:30pm at the Clinton Memorial AME Zion Church (610 Third Street, Greenport.)
The group has since grown to more than 100 members, and Valerie English joined our Juneteenth organizing committee (and designed the posters and t-shirts for this and last year’s Juneteenth celebrations.)
We all deeply believe in the work we do at Coming to the TABLE, which stands for “Taking America Beyond the Legacy of Enslavement.” The organization’s mission, as defined on its website, is to work towards a “just and truthful society that acknowledges and seeks to heal from the racial wounds of the past—from slavery and the many forms of racism it spawned.”
We do that by acknowledging full histories, making connections across racial lines in order to develop and deepen relationships — and work towards healing the damage caused to all of us due to racism. We also, as a group, take action to actively dismantle systems of racial inequality, injustice and oppression to work for the transformation of our nation. We have recently hosted several impactful programs at the North Fork Arts Center — including films, panel discussions and book signings.
Organizing and celebrating Juneteenth is yet another powerful way to continue to spread the message of racial healing throughout our community. We are grateful to Greenport Village and Southold Town for making a proclamation to acknowledge this important day in history for all Americans!
Last year, we focused on educating everyone on the history and significance of Juneteenth. This year, Pastor Natalie wants to focus on our youth. The theme is, “Having Our Say: What Freedom, Equality and Justice Mean to Me.”
Faith Welch, our Youth Ambassador, has taken this message to heart — she is currently working with the national organization to launch a nationwide youth group that meets monthly via Zoom to have discussions about what racial healing means to young people. She will also be doing a spoken word piece at the event on June 28, one of many performances by young people who have been working on essays and other artistic expressions of what Freedom Day means to them.
In addition to the youth, this year’s Juneteenth Celebration will focus on joy, because that’s how we think of this day: one that was celebrated throughout June as different groups of enslaved people learned about their mandated freedom at different times as news spread slowly in the mid-1800s. We believe that Juneteenth was a final realization of the true meaning of liberty and justice for all. This is the America we believe in.
We also know that freedom means different things to different people, which is why part of our celebration includes revealing a Freedom Community Quilt where people have been making quilt squares that represent what freedom, equity and inclusion mean to them.
“The Freedom quilt says our freedoms will not be quietly taken,” Pastor Natalie says of this special project. “Our Freedom Community Quilt speaks loudly … we will not be silent, muted or voiceless.”
To learn more about this—and how you can participate, please follow us on Instagram @ctttnf or reach out via email ctttnf@gmail.com.
We invite everyone to make a square and be part of our Freedom Community Quilt which will be revealed on June 28th at the North Fork Arts Center at 2pm.
We invite everyone to join us that day to participate in a community-wide celebration! There will be music, and drumming and dancing! There will be poetry and song.
We invite everyone to join us as we build a bigger table on the North Fork, surrounded by people who believe in racial healing. That we are stronger together. And that freedom for one must mean freedom for all.
In solidarity, the North Fork Coming to the Table Juneteenth Planning Committee
Megan Bowles
Reverend Margaret Cowden
Sylvia Daley
Valerie English
Nicki Gohorel
Carolyn Peabody
Valerie Shelby
Liz Welch
Faith Welch
Reverend Natalie Wimberly