Join us for 2022 Juneteenth 'Caring for the People' Block Party
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 6, 2022
CONTACT: Chiany Dri, Simone Ruskamp, Jordan Killebrew
Co-Founders, juneteenthsbc@gmail.com
JUNETEENTH SANTA BARBARA
“CARING FOR THE PEOPLE”
BLOCK PARTY, SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2022
Celebrating the Emancipation of formerly enslaved Black/African Americans
SANTA BARBARA, CA - Juneteenth Santa Barbara welcomes the community at large to the fifth year of celebrating Juneteenth in Santa Barbara! The free block party celebration will be on Sunday, June 19, 2022, from 12 pm to 5 pm, in historically Black Santa Barbara also known as the Funk Zone. On the 200 block of Gray Avenue in Santa Barbara, California.
The celebration includes free food for up to 200 people at Shalhoobs Funk Zone Patio, local live performances, the return of the Black/African American Artisan Market, a kids zone with Princess Tiana from Princess & the Frog and so much more! As the celebration coincides with Father’s Day, the event will acknowledge the caregivers in our lives through the theme, Caring For the People.
Coming to the stage for this event is local Black talent, Vivian Storm, Miriam Dance, Talitha Garbielle, The Knew Vibe, Sojourner Kincaid Rolle, DJ Tim Stone, and MC Jacquelyn Chin. The Black Artisan Market includes: Aiku Apothecary, Angela Cantu, Baked by the Hoods, Cali Moss LLC, COVID-19 Mobile Vaccine Clinic, Elf Kraft, Gateway Educational Services, Healing Justice SB, Healing Space (UCSB), High Resonance Rocks, Madi’s Treasure Box, MLK Jr. SB, Mo Sama, NAACP Santa Barbara, R-Evolution: Dialogues in the Diaspora, The Sea League, Planned Parenthood Central Coast, UCSB Black Grad Association, Valley in Film, and Warrior Mother Essential Oils & Blends.
“Juneteenth is a visionary convening, and we are honored to continue this tradition in Santa Barbara,” said Simone Ruskamp, Co-Founder of Healing Justice SB and Juneteenth SB. “We held our first public celebration 5 years ago, honoring the many Black residents who held gatherings before us, and we will continue later this month visioning vibrant Black futures. We have much to do, addressing health inequities, gentrification and the continuing displacement of Black folks; but if our growth from a celebration of 50 to thousands teaches us anything, it’s that together , people can do incredible things.”
As we are still in the realm of COVID-19 we request that social distancing rules apply to this outdoor, in-person event. The organizers are acutely aware of the ongoing national climate and have developed a safety plan for everyone to celebrate Juneteenth safely in Santa Barbara.
Juneteenth will also feature a collaboration with the city of Santa Barbara and the architects of Page and Turnbull who have been working with Juneteenth SB and Healing Justice SB organizers to preserve and archive local Black history. The Historical Context Statement further validates the areas known as the Funk Zone, lower Eastside and Haley Corridor were once areas where Black people lived, thrived, and will be celebrated on the same land during Sunday’s Block Party.
During Juneteenth we continue a Black/African American tradition of celebrating the abolishment of enslavement with interactive art, song, food, and our vibrant Black/African American community.
We are reminded that the first Juneteenth celebration on June 19th, 1865 in Galveston, Texas marked the day Union General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston and issued General Order Number 3 enforcing the Emancipation Proclamation:
“The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free,” the general noted. “This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired labor.”
Prior to this act Texas, along with several communities in the American South still invested in the economics of slavery. These areas that were isolated politically and geographically from much of the country, resisted emancipation and continued the practice of enslavement.
“Although General Granger and his news of freedom were celebrated,” said Ruskamp. “The full text of the order made clear that progress would be slow going, as enslaved people were encouraged to stay and work for their former owners and instructed to refrain from idleness. The first Juneteenth celebrated the federal government for acknowledging Black personhood and intentionally made space for Black folks to organize and plan for the long struggle towards full citizenship. I’m passionate about seeing this tradition continued in Santa Barbara as it is also an acknowledgment of the work still needing to be done to create more equitable communities.”
Juneteenth Santa Barbara History
Federally recognized in June of 2021, Black/African American communities across the country have marked Juneteenth with celebration and organizing efforts centered on supporting and uplifting Black life. Chiany Dri, Simone Ruskamp, and Jordan Killebrew, brought a reiteration of Juneteenth (in its fifth year) back to Santa Barbara as several Black/African American Elders have celebrated in our region in the past.
In 2018, Ruskamp, Dri, and Killebrew gathered to celebrate Junteenth at El Centro on the lower westside of Santa Barbara. This first event featured home-cooked Soul Food, Black centered programming and most importantly, a safe space for the community to come together to celebrate Black culture. The following year, Juneteenth SB partnered with the Santa Barbara Public Library, where the event grew to 400 people. In 2020, due to COVID-19, the celebration was a virtual event that had over 13,000 viewers and featured an array of videos of Black community members sharing their stories, showcasing their work, and their collective histories.
In 2021 Juneteenth SB partnered with Healing Justice Santa Barbara to put on a series of events in-person and virtual events and the historic opening of MELANIN Black Artist Gallery at 833 State St Santa Barbara, CA 93101.
“From a small cookout on the lower west side to an entire block party dedicated to celebration, Juneteenth in Santa Barbara has been a historic revival for Black folks and the greater community,” said Chiany Dri, Co-Founder of Juneteenth SB. “Five years ago, we never could have imagined that our intention to bring people together would become a collective vision, come to life, to celebrate freedom, community, the arts and Black joy throughout Santa Barbara. Most importantly, the evolution of Juneteenth Santa Barbara over the last five years shows us how impactful this kind of celebration is and it serves as a reminder, not just of freedom gained, but of the work we must continue to do in support of a greater vision for freedom.”
Thank you to our 2022 Community Partners (Sponsors)
Special thanks to the families and artists that made contributions to help make this day possible.
Thank you to our Platinum Community Partner the City of Santa Barbara, our Gold Sponsors the City of Goleta, County of Santa Barbara, Pacifica Graduate Institute and Alumni Association, Spark Creative Events, and the Santa Barbara Foundation. We also like to thank our Silver Community Partners: Union Bank and Island View Outfitters, along with the Bronze Community Partners: Acme Hospitality, American Riviera Bank, Endowment for Youth Community, The Fund for Santa Barbara, Golden 1 Credit Union, Montecito Bank & Trust, Oniracom, SBCC Foundation, UCSB Office of Black Student Development, and Unitarian Society of Santa Barbara.
-----------
About Juneteenth Santa Barbara
Juneteenth Santa Barbara is an annual event, where we bring community members together to celebrate the freedom of enslaved African Americans in the United States. Two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed, enslaved Black people in Galveston, Texas were informed of their freedom and immediately danced in the streets. Today we honor our ancestors and celebrate our freedom, showcasing Black joy and culture in Santa Barbara, California. Our community event also honors local Black artists, performers, and organizations as well as providing free food, dancing, and singing. To learn more please go to juneteenthsb.org.
About Healing Justice Santa Barbara
Healing Justice Santa Barbara - Healing Justice Santa Barbara aspires to uplift all Black/African-Americans to affirm that they are deserving of safety, love, equity, respect, and joy. Simply put we do it for the love of Black people. Learn more at HJSB.org.
# # #