Via Community News Service, a University of Vermont journalism internship, on assignment for the Winooski News
WINOOSKI — A golden hour sun on June 20 glinted off colorful tents pitched in Rotary Park. Under each tent, Black artists, chefs and business reps laughed and danced to DJ Craig Mitchell’s setlist. Parents mingled along the park steps, toting children in face paint blowing rainbow bubbles.
This was the scene at Winooski’s fourth Juneteenth celebration.
“Winooski’s the most diverse city in the state. We’re celebrating them. We’re celebrating the freedom and love that the community has for them,” said Mitchell, one of the celebration’s lead organizers. “We want to make sure to let all folks know that they’re part of Winooski.”
A federal holiday since 2021, Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865 — the day Union troops marched into Galveston Bay, Texas, and informed over 2,000 enslaved people they’d been freed after the Emancipation Proclamation.
For some Winooskians, remembering this history defines their city.
“Many people who live in this town can trace themselves back to who were slaves,” Deputy Mayor Thomas Renner said. “On this day, our ancestors were given freedom, and this has allowed us to be here. To be able to celebrate that is so important.”
Some of Winooski’s Black artists turned out to showcase their artistic prowess.
A painter, rapper, R&B singer and Vermonter for over a decade, Charlie Mayne blends the vibrant colors of pop art with surrealist imagery. His paintings feature Black caricatures with bleeding X’s for eyes.
“The art expresses the exaggeration of who some white people find dangerous. But I’m trying to show Vermont that it’s okay to be different. It’s okay to look like you’re delusional,” Mayne said. “My art is getting everybody comfortable with culture, to be accepting of other people’s way of expressing art.”
After showcasing his paintings, Mayne hopped on stage and performed a handful of his songs. His lyricism discusses his experiences growing up as a Black man in Los Angeles.
The event celebrated cultural roots, too.
By way of Eritrea, Mulu Tewelde, owner of “Mulu’s Kitchen” catering service, fed the crowd.
Since moving to Vermont in 2006, Tewelde has been filling plates with the flavors of East African cuisine. At the Juneteenth celebration, she served injera bread — a tangy, flat kind of sourdough that’s Ethiopia and Eritrea’s national dish — and traditional Yemiser W’et stew — a tongue-scorching blend of lentils and spices.
For Tewelde, food is the best way to bring people together, and she wanted the Winooski community to feel that love on Juneteenth.
“I love to cook, and I love to feed people,” Tewelde said. “I want people to feel love and enjoyment. I want to not only fill their belly, but also fill their soul.”
The sentiment seemed to extend to everyone.
“Even though the holiday focuses on African American liberation, it’s something that we should all be celebrating,” said Harmony Edosomwan, who is representing Vermont in Miss Black USA. “Despite Vermont being the second whitest state in the country, it’s important to remember because liberation for some means liberation for all.”
