“It’s really important to celebrate people; it’s important to celebrate culture,” says Lindsey Corbitt, event producer for Tulsa Juneteenth.
Known as the longest-running African American holiday, Juneteenth commemorates the end of slavery and honors African American culture. From its origin in Galveston, Texas, in 1865, Juneteenth has grown into a federal holiday and a nationwide celebration. Tulsa’s festival is one of the largest.
“Last year, the numbers exceeded 50,000 over the course of the festival,” Corbitt says. “I think Tulsa’s Juneteenth is as large as it is because people are actually buying into what the city has to offer, which is our people and their individual talents.”
The Tulsa Juneteenth Festival, in its eighth year, is a revival of the long-running Juneteenth festivals of the 80s and 90s.
This year’s event takes place June 16-18 on the Tulsa Authority for Economic Opportunity (TAEO) lawn, 700 N. Greenwood Ave. Corbitt believes celebrating Juneteenth in Tulsa’s historic Greenwood District is important.
“It allows our people to not only experience the Juneteenth festival, but also the history of Greenwood and Black Wall Street,” she notes. “When you’re having an event of this magnitude, what better place to have it than a location that is historic and showcases the history of Tulsa — where we’ve come from, where we’re headed and how we never want to forget our past, but want to allow our past to help elevate us here in the future.”
The free, family-friendly festival features music from artists including nationally touring Con Funk Shun and Tulsa favorites, like The Wise Men and Omaley B.
“Juneteenth is a time of celebration and connecting locally through a variety of mediums and expressions. This year we have expanded our programming on all fronts and are offering art and tech workshops in partnership with some really innovative Tulsans,” says Natalie Lauren, chair of the visual arts and wellness committee. “Encouraging mental and physical health in the Black community has been a joy of ours. We’re extremely inspired by the community’s response to our day of wellness, which will include yoga, movement, meditation and dance.”
Lauren emphasizes the fact that Tulsa Juneteenth is staffed almost entirely by volunteers, with community as a core principle.
“A lot of people don’t know that Tulsa Juneteenth is women and minority led. There’s a small team of very brilliant Black women who spend the year planning, executing and investing in this festival not only as a labor, but also as a staple event of our city,” Lauren notes.
Corbitt concurs. “We’re all in this together. It’s about the gain for the community, making sure that this event is community-based and for our community, and that they’re getting what they need out of it,” she says.
For more information, visit tulsajuneteenth.org.
