Folsom Juneteenth event to celebrate African American liberation surpassing expectations

A family-friendly Juneteenth event is being held at Black Miners Bar this Saturday and the response has been greater than organizers could have imagined. The event is hosted by California State Parks and Friends of Lakes Folsom and Natoma (FOLFAN) and will be held on lakeside beach of historic Black Miners Bar. Festival Chair Tracie Stafford said they are now expecting upwards of 3-thousand people to attend. "We did not expect this kind of response and we are just really thrilled," said Stafford. Juneteenth Day of Observance commemorates the date of June 19, 1865, two years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, when the final African Americans who were enslaved were liberated. Organizers of the Folsom Juneteenth event say its a day for the community to celebrate African American freedom and the triumph of human spirit over oppression. Stafford said she finds that sometimes people get uncomfortable talking about Juneteenth or understanding its significance. "I like to position it that the Fourth of July was when our incredible country was freed and earned independence and we all celebrate that," Stafford explained. "But it was Juneteenth when all Americans were freed. My descendants were still enslaved at the time of the Fourth of July. So it was almost 100 years later when all Americans were free and that's something all of us should be celebrating." Black Miners Bar, where the Folsom event is being staged, holds strong historical significance because it was named to recognize the African American gold miners who were pivotal in the discovery of gold in that area during the 1849 California Gold Rush. There will be many festivities at the Juneteenth event, including a concert with Grammy Award-winning R&B group Club Nouveau. There will also be a kids zone, petting zoo and a beer and wine garden featuring black-owned wineries and distilleries. There will also be various food options, educational booths, dancing, horseback riding and kayaking. The Folsom Juneteenth event will run from 10 a.m.-8 p.m. and is free, but vehicles are subject to a day-use fee to enter the state park. There are 800 parking spots at Black Miners Bar, but event organizers are expecting all those spots to fill up. They are looking into providing shuttle service. For more information about the event, visit https://juneteenthfolsom.org/http://JuneteenthFolsom.org.