MURFREESBORO – Riverside Park in Murfreesboro was packed with tents, chairs, and people on Saturday, June 14 for the town’s 5th annual Juneteenth Freedom Day Festival.

The event is organized each year by the Hertford County African American History Coalition.

Things kicked off at noon with a welcome from Mayor Hal Thomas and a prayer of invocation from Mayor Pro Tem Berna Stephens. Following that, Brandon Vaughan led the crowd in a rendition of “Lift Every Voice and Sing.”

Juneteenth is a holiday that celebrates the emancipation of enslaved people during the Civil War. President Abraham Lincoln made the Emancipation Proclamation in January 1863 to free the people, but it was not until more than two years later – on June 19, 1865 – that those orders were officially enforced throughout the country.

“You’ve got to know your past so you can move forward in a positive way,” said Jackie Ruffin Pittman, who performed a libation ceremony during the festival. “Because if we can’t remember our past, we’re not going to do too well in our future.”

Ruffin Pittman began the libation ceremony by first singing a short West African song with the lyrics “funga alafia ashay ashay,” which she explained meant “welcome and blessings.” Then she poured water over a plant to honor their ancestors. She asked members of the crowd to call out the names of family members who have already passed on while she poured the water.

She also briefly shared some information about her recently published book, “Ruffin Brothers,” which recounts the story of her family and other local people who overcame obstacles to build up their businesses during the Jim Crow era.

“By remembering our roots, we will not only preserve our heritage, but we also empower the next generation to rise even higher, and never forget how far God has brought us,” she concluded.

Cheryl Deloatch shared information about how local enslaved people found out about their freedom after the Civil War. Her source was the book “Trial Separation: Murfreesboro, North Carolina and the Civil War” by Dr. Thomas C. Parramore.

According to Parramore’s book, some enslaved people in Hertford County were able to escape to freedom before the war ended by seeking passage on Union Army gunboats that traveled down the river. Many others, however, remained in bondage until the end of the war when news of General Lee’s surrender at Appomattox spread to the town via a newspaper article.

Deloatch noted that while Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation freed the slaves, it took longer for it to be enforced in areas – like Murfreesboro – where Confederate soldiers had control. The news of freedom traveled slowly in those days.

This is the fifth year the Hertford County African American History Coalition has put on Murfreesboro’s Juneteenth festival, bringing together the community to learn more about the past and celebrate the future, all while having a good time of fellowship and fun.

The event featured a variety of craft, information, and food vendors. DJ Ronnie P provided entertainment throughout the afternoon between performances from Equip, D’Vito, and Cultured Jazz Band.

The Coalition, first formed in 2018, works to document, preserve, and promote the history of African Americans in Hertford County. Along with the Juneteenth event, they also host a Black History program each February and a Veterans Luncheon in November. Additionally, the group has sponsored historic markers highlighting important local people and places of years past.

Deloatch encouraged people to consider volunteering with the organization.

“This coalition is for us,” she explained. “It’s uplifting our history. This is something we have a say in. We’re volunteering not for someone else, but for us.”