Richmond City Councilmember Jamelia Brown experienced a full-circle moment. Once a child in the crowd cheering along her city’s long-running Juneteenth parade, today she proudly walked the route as an elected leader for the first time. Her heart swelled with pride and nostalgia.
“My mom is here, my kids are here,” the first-time councilmember said. “You know what it feels like? Home.”
For years, Brown and her neighbors have gathered to celebrate Juneteenth — long before it became a national holiday.
“We’re here celebrating freedom,” added Brown, who represents District 1. “We’re celebrating community, the history of Richmond, and the impact that the Black community has had on Richmond.”
The Juneteenth parade began at 10 a.m. with retired Police Captain Art Johnson and community leader Annie King‑Meredith serving as co‑grand marshals in a tradition stretching back over 40 years. The procession wound from Kennedy High to Nicholl Park, led by Richmond High band and tailed by a row of classic cars. Also marching were elected officials, Richmond police, fire personnel, city employees, and community organizations such as Richmond NAACP, SOS Richmond, Rich City Rides and United Teachers of Richmond.
The parade was followed by a vibrant festival featuring soul food, two stages of live music (including the Original TTT Band), games, youth activities, and over 130 vendor booths — the most ever for the festival. Vendors included local favorites CJs Barbecue & Fish and Snapper Seafood, a Beautiful Rebel Esthetics barber booth, local jewelers, organizations such as the Safe Return Project, Urban Tilth, West County Wastewater, Richmond Rainbow Pride, AC Transit and League of Women Voters. Longtime sponsor Chevron Richmond hosted a lively booth with about a dozen employees handing out giveaways and chatting with community members.
Michelle Denise Milam, City of Richmond crime prevention manager and event organizer, attributed the record interest from vendors to the festival’s authentic, homegrown roots. Milam noted the festival’s roots in Richmond derived from enduring traditions passed down by families who moved from The South in order to work in the shipyards during WWII.
“A lot of folks came from Texas who reside in Richmond, or have grandparents who passed their traditions on,” Milam said. “So we’re also trying to pass it on to the next generation. So people can say, ‘I remember going to Juneteenth, and I know what it’s about.'”
Juneteenth is celebrated annually on June 19 to commemorate the date in 1865 when enslaved African Americans in Galveston, Texas finally learned they were free, over two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed.
Milam and co-Grand Marshal Johnson agree that Richmond’s vibrant and diverse celebration of Juneteenth should be an example to leaders waging war, conflict and division around the world right now.
“I’m hoping that somebody will make a change in our leadership,” Johnson said. “We have an opportunity here to serve as a bright example for our nation and world.”
Voices throughout the event shared themes of unity and hope. NAACP outreach worker Andre Shumake Sr. celebrated the festival’s diversity as a sign of healing.
“Folks from many different races and cultures are out here, coming together,” he said. “So there is hope.”
Parade MC and community advocate Antwon Cloird spoke to Richmond’s resilience.
“We gotta stay vigilant and hopeful, we must unite ourselves,” he said. “The Black community has suffered mass evictions, but we still got to keep our identity and the legacy we have worked so hard to build.”
