Hundreds celebrate Juneteenth in San Francisco over Father's Day weekend

San Francisco celebrated the Juneteenth holiday with a parade and festival along Market Street Saturday morning. The event has grown over the years, and while the holiday commemorates the ending of slavery in America, it took a while for that promise to become a reality.

San Francisco's Juneteenth Parade

As the parade marchers began assembling at 2nd and Market, a man named Goody was already set up, selling t-shirts calling Juneteenth "the real Independence Day."

"It's kind of given to us.  Like, y'all have a day.  You know, Juneteenth," he said.  "It's our 4th of July.  Our Independence Day.  It's, like, a separate type thing."

The Juneteenth parade has existed for a long time, but it was mostly a homegrown event on other streets of the City.  But this is the fourth year that San Francisco held it on Market Street, the same location as all of the City's other big celebrations.  And that meant something to a young man who called himself "Psalms."

"I got strong feelings about this.  It just shows the city supports us.  Especially with the parade," he said.  "It gives me a sense of direction, a sense of purpose, you know?  It helps me feel closer to my community.  So, yeah, I'm appreciative of this."

Hundreds of people danced, rode on floats, and rumbled down Market in classic cars, sometimes with few people on the sidewalk watching.  And event producer Tamara Walker said there was reason for that.

"Everyone here in San Francisco, African Americans, wants to be in the parade," she said.  "I'm always, like, you got to watch the parade, too. We all can't be in the parade."

But Walker said the message she hoped people would take from the event is summed up in the slogan, "Freedom Then, Freedom Now."

"'Freedom Then, Freedom Now' means that we're still fighting now for the equality and equity," she said.  "We helped build it here.  So, we are still fighting the fight for freedom.  I would like people to take that away."

But Juneteenth isn't just an event for African Americans, it's them as a free people.  It commemorates June 19th, 1865, when federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, to finally enforce the Emancipation Proclamation, which President Lincoln issued two and half years earlier.

"He gave the order for the troops to go to Galveston, Texas, to make sure that they understood that this is the United States," said SF Archbishop Gregory Richardson.  "Nothing separates America.  We are one."

"So, this day is a celebration of us as people," said Goody.  

That's why he calls Juneteenth the real Independence Day.  Although he said he's not sure that the country's commitments to African Americans are currently being backed up with action.

"Yeah, we've come to be numb, actually, to that point.  You know, promises, promises," he said.  "We need to all come as one.  We need to come for what's been promised to us, you know, as people.  Which I don't think will ever happen, you know, for real to tell you the truth."

But DeAngelo Hall wasn't as pessimistic.  He's a district manager for Target, one of the event's sponsors.  And with big names starting to back the celebration, Juneteenth is growing, with the hope of becoming another signature tradition in the City.

"It feels like the celebration is what it should be!" said Hall.  "It should be celebrated.  We should be excited.  We have so much in the Bay Area that represents Juneteenth, Pride, anything you can think of.  So, for us to all come together and celebrate like this is amazing."

A festival at the foot of Market Street followed Saturday morning's parade.  And the citywide celebration was set to continue with a Juneteenth Father's Day party at Gilman Park in the City's Bayview District.

Father's Day Juneteenth celebrations

On Sunday in San Francisco's Bayview district, the city threw its annual celebration honoring dads and anyone else taking on that important role.

"It's a feeling I can't describe," Pierre Blakely said.  "Just being together, and them appreciating me for what I've done.  But it's not for what I've done--it's what I'm supposed to do.  Those are my kids."

He grew up without his own parents, but as a father of three sons and a daughter, Pierre accepted the heavy responsibility that goes with bringing someone new into the world.  

"You've got to have kids to understand, you know?" he said, with a smile. "You've got your little ups and downs, right?  You never know what you're going to go through.  But you've got to hang in there.  They didn't ask to come into this world.  You love on them. You take care of them.  You guide them.  You be that father you're supposed to be."

His wife, Rolanda, agreed that Pierre has been a great father.  Just don't call him lucky.

"Luck has nothing to do with it," she said.  It's hard work to get that with your kids.  It takes work, effort and love and patience.  I think we're still working on the patience part with him!"

Ranging from ages 40 to 17, the kids seemed pretty pleased with the way things worked out.

"I'm just happy to have him in my life.  I talk to him every day.  And it could be for, like, three minutes, and sometimes for two hours," said daughter Ailysa.  "I'm just truly blessed to have him in my life.  Yeah, he's a great human being."

"He does what a dad is supposed to do," said youngest son William.  "Been doing it for years.  From his childhood, he's doing way better than most dads will do.  So, yeah, I consider him a good one."

"Yeah, he says it all the time, you know?" said eldest son, Pierre, Jr, who joined the military.  "He's proud of me.  Brags about it, 'my son's in the Navy,' and stuff.  So, you know, it's all good!"

"Actually, I have friends who haven't had their father in their life," said middle son, Jar'lel.  "And it's a shame but we've all got to stick together no matter what."

Tamara Walker, the organizer of the Father's Day celebration, said the African American community has a tradition of stepping up to create that "village" we often hear about.

"Family is bigger than that," she said.  "It can be your neighbor that actually turns into your family because we all come together to raise the village, right?  So, even though you may not be my cousin, you're my cousin."

But even when someone does get into trouble, it helps if there is a guiding force to get them back on track.  Bishop Ishmael Burch, with St. Andrew Missionary Baptist Church, remembered when his own son stole a car at age 13.

"We sat down.  He told me he would never do anything like that again.  He was sorry for it," he said.  "So, it didn't separate us.  It really made us closer and much better."

"One thing about my dad," said his son, Ishmael, III, "he always loved me. He allowed me to make mistakes in life and corrected me.  Actually, he told me when I had my son that I was going to experience some of the things that I put him though.  Man, it was very much challenging."