MISSOULA, Mont. – Dozens of people gathered at Fort Missoula for the Garden City’s third annual Juneteenth celebration. The event was presented by Black Montana Collective, and the celebration had many guest speakers that discussed the history and impact of the holiday.
“Being, African American and living in Montana. We represent less than 1% of the state’s population. So having a time and a place for all of us to come together and fellowship, it’s been amazing,” said Pamela Smith, an Educator and a guest speaker, when talking about the celebration.
A new element to this year’s celebration was the acclimation of the Juneteenth flag. The star in the middle of the flag represents the emancipation of slaves in Texas, and it ties the history of America to the Juneteenth holiday.
“I’m thinking and envisioning that at some point in time, Montana will be flying the flag over its capitol building,” said Dexter Royes, a founding member of Black Montana Collective.
The main message from the event was to celebrate the end of slavery, but also to educate people about current economic inequality and African American’s ongoing struggle to overcome racial biases.
“We’re not truly free, although we celebrated emancipation…Today was a day to really educate on the challenges we still face in the USA as African Americans,” Smith explained.
Montana is one of the seventeen states in America that has not made Juneteenth an official holiday, but the city of Missoula is proud to be one of the cities in the state that celebrates the holiday.
“I do believe that we have, a sincere and caring community in Missoula, that are interested in understanding, and up the awareness to start the healing process with so many marginalized Americans,” said Andrea Davis, the Mayor of Missoula.
Fort Missoula expressed during the event that they will continue to host the Juneteenth celebration in the years to come.
