For Kahina Van Dyke, the current political climate in the country makes this year’s Juneteenth celebrations on the Vineyard even more essential.
“We are a model for what happens when people lead from the heart and their humanity versus their demographics and labels,” she said.
Ms. Van Dyke is the owner and operator of the Narragansett House hotel in Oak Bluffs, where she held an informal gathering of friends on the hotel’s porch in June of 2021.
“As we were on the porch, it got announced that Juneteenth was a national holiday, so we were celebrating it before it became a national holiday,” she said. “I’m really proud of that, because [attendees were] aged from age two to 102 and we had an open mic, and it was people were just telling their stories. It had this beautiful feeling to it.”
Each year since she has helped lead the charge in organizing events to commemorate the official end of slavery following the freeing of slaves in Texas on June 19, 1865, over two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was declared by President Abraham Lincoln.
This year’s Juneteenth Jubilee Festival kicks off on Thursday in Oak Bluffs with a community portrait pop-up. Also, at 11 a.m. on Thurdsay, there will be a flag raising ceremony at the Tabernacle.
The festivities then move to Union Chapel, where Friday’s programming focuses on the economy and how equal opportunities can be improved in that sector. Speakers include Andre Perry and Michael Eric Dyson.
“There is no real social justice without economic justice and economic equity,” Ms. Van Dyke said. “We need to find a way to have a collaborative and inclusive capitalism that doesn’t leave people behind.”
The Jubilee Festival takes place on Saturday and features conversations with astronaut Joan Higginbotham, artist Chester Higgins and others. Live music will be performed by Greg Banks, Donna McElroy and students from Berklee College of Music.
Ms. Higginbotham, who is the third African American woman to go into space, said she is excited to connect with others on the Vineyard.
“When you bring a group of people together, specifically for this purpose, to celebrate the freedom and all the history and the progress since that time, it just makes everything that much more special,” she said.
Diversity in thought and life experiences is essential when celebrating Juneteenth, according to Ms. Higginbotham. She referenced her crew during her Space Shuttle Discovery mission STS-116.
“You have these 10 people with all differences who are working together and getting along on this tin can of a spaceship,” Ms. Higginbotham said. “Why can’t we all do that on Earth, where there’s so much more space?”
Ms. Higginbotham is approaching her talk with hope.
“History is cyclic, and it tends to repeat itself, and it will matter how much progress we make,” she said. “Sometimes it feels like we’re going backwards but the big thing to realize and to recognize is that we are people who are very proud and very resilient.”
The NAACP of Martha’s Vineyard is hosting their fourth annual Taste of Juneteenth event on Sunday from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the Portuguese American Club. BIPOC chefs from around the Island will showcase their culinary skills, paired with a performance from IslandHipHop.
Toni Kauffman, past president of the Martha’s Vineyard NAACP branch, helped to organize the event, which emphasizes the next generation.
“It is important that we include our youth so that they have a sense of what has gone on before they were a part of today’s world,” she said.
For Chrissy Laury, organizer of the event and member of the Martha’s Vineyard NAACP branch, it is important to carry on the legacy of Juneteenth and not forget its meaning.
“It’s really important to just not forget the cause and not forget what our fight is about.” she said. “To not forget the folks who came before us and picking up that baton and continuing to go on with this.”
Downtown Oak Bluffs will also be home to art showcases. At MV Salads, an exhibition titled Open Hearts – A Juneteenth Art Celebration, will display art from Emmy-Award-winner Emmai Alaquiva along with other local artists.
At the Martha’s Vineyard Museum in Vineyard Haven, the Vineyard Gazette Media Group is partnering with the museum to host a panel discussion titled Juneteenth: Legacy and Promise. Panelist Dani Monroe, founder of the MV Chief Diversity Officer Summit, will be offering a modern-day view of the meaning of Juneteenth.
“If we also can focus on what is working, then that provides people motivation, inspiration and hope that this work will remain in our lives,” she said.
Ms. Van Dyke said her aim is for everyone to leave feeling motivated.
“Some of the people that we look up to, some of the ideas that we think are really, really big, it just took the courage of conviction to get it done,” she said. “So I want individuals to feel inspired to their own greatness, and then I want them to feel connected to a community.”
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