Juneteenth Festival - “The City That Carries Us: Pain, Streets, and Heartbeats”

Join us on June 19 for “The City That Carries Us: Pain, Streets, and Heartbeats” a Juneteenth festival in Lewiston featuring public art, community parade, performances, and a block party. Maine Inside Out is honored to host this free event in partnership with the City of Lewiston with incredible community partners and local artists. 

1:00pm Opening Ceremony at The Public Theatre, 31 Maple Street, Lewiston - featuring Glen David Andrews Band, art making workshop, and banner reveal with artist Serafim Yssolo. 

1:30pm Community Grief Ritual with water and roses. 

2:30pm Parade from The Public Theatre to Kennedy Park with Glen David Andrews Band, MIO artists, festival coalition partners, and community members. Communal Celebration Ritual with music and dancing! 

3:15pm Arrive at Kennedy Park. Communal Grief Ritual with sound and silence. 

3:30pm Premiere of the MIO Creative Ensemble new, original play.

4 - 6:30pm Block Party at Kennedy Park - BBQ, food trucks, bounce house, dunk tank, art making, music, dancing, and more! Featuring MIO artists, speakers, and special guests Kenya Hall, Samuel James, Andre Hicks, and DJ Dane Morgan.

The parade route starts at The Public Theatre (31 Maple St.) and travels on Maple, Knox, Birch, Blake, and Walnut into Kennedy Park. The route is .5 miles.

The festival is designed to be accessible for people with disabilities, with wheelchair accessible spaces and restrooms and ASL interpretation. If you need any specific information or accommodations in order to participate, please contact admin@maineinsideout.org.

This is a substance-free event.

JUNETEENTH IN MAINE

Juneteenth marks the day when federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, in 1865 to ensure that all enslaved people were freed, more than two years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. The following year, freedmen in Texas organized the first of what would become an annual celebration. Juneteenth became a State holiday in Maine in 2021 though it has been celebrated here unofficially for years. Juneteenth is a celebration of the end of slavery, a time to honor the resilience and strength of those who fought for freedom and equality; and also to recognize that the fight for true liberation and justice continues today. 

 

This year, there are many Juneteenth events happening across the state of Maine in the month of June. Here is a Map of Statewide Juneteenth Events created by the Permanent Commission on Racial, Indigenous, and Tribal Populations. 

 

The Atlantic Black Box has offered these resources for education about the history of the Altantic slave trade and slavery in Maine, and we encourage everyone celebrating Juneteenth to educate themselves about the history and legacy of slavery here in Maine. Starting this month, the Atlantic Black Box is hosting “Walk Where: Seven sites. Seven months. Seven chances to move in solidarity toward truth & transformation.”

 

Maine Inside Out