The Malverne school district held its fifth annual Juneteenth Jubilee at the high school last Friday. The event, which is organized by alumni, parents and students, featured musical entertainment, crafts, field activities and vendors.
Juneteenth, marked on June 19, is a federal holiday commemorating the end of slavery in the United States. “Juneteenth celebrates that in Texas, people who were still enslaved long after the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 were only freed in 1865,” district Superintendent Lorna Lewis said.
“Many people here don’t know about it,” Lewis added. “It’s important that we teach real history and celebrate what this country has become, (and) the diversity we have in Malverne.”
The jubilee began with a march through Lakeview led by the Pride of Malverne Marching Band. The school district encompasses the predominantly Black hamlet.
“Malverne’s strength is our diversity, and today we celebrate our diversity and strength as a community,” Maurice W. Downing’s assistant principal Stephen Benfante, a co-chair of the celebration, said.
“We have to continue to support events like this because of the suffrage our people went through,” Doris Hicks-Newkirk, president of the Lakeview branch of the NAACP, said.
After the marchers arrived at the high school, students from every school in the district offered musical entertainment and dance performances, including the award-winning MHS select choir, the Winter Guard, the Davison Avenue 3rd Grade Ensemble, the MWD Glee Club and the MHS step team.
“Every year this gets bigger and better,” Nicole Henderson, the event’s other co-chair and a district parent, said. “We have more and more students running the show — it’s largely student-driven. It just shows how amazing this community is, as well as our students.”
“I love seeing our community come together to celebrate this type of event and showcase everything our district has to offer,” student Co-host Sanaa Demosthenes, a junior at the high school, said.
Vendors and food trucks operated by local and Black-owned businesses sold a range of products, from food to clothes and self-care products.
“Juneteenth is a highly regarded holiday in the United States, especially in the Black community,” student co-host Kaiden Ulysee, a MHS senior, said. “Being able to facilitate an event celebrating the holiday is a privilege.”
Among the arts and crafts on offer were portrait drawing, face painting and bracelet making. There was an inflatable relay race slide and basketball hoop.
The participants included representatives of the Divine Nine historically Black Greek fraternities and sororities. “It’s always good to have Black leaders come around and have an influence,” Felix Dunbar, a member of the Omega Psi Phi fraternity, said.
Field day activities, hosted by the Malverne’s Alumni Education Foundation, included egg-on-a-spoon and potato sack races, an obstacle course and a 40-meter dash. The winners of the dash received medals, AEFM shirts and a chance to meet Derrick Adkins, the 1996 Olympic gold medalist in the 400-meter hurdles and a Malverne High alumnus.
“We try to make this a very fun family and community event,” Uchenna Emeagwali, a member of the jubilee’s planning committee and a district parent, said. “I hope people enjoy themselves and learn as much information as they can.”
Veronica Lippencott, the director of Hofstra University’s Africana Studies program and the associate director of the university’s Center for “Race,” Culture and Social Justice, was the keynote speaker. She discussed the history and importance of Juneteenth.
“The fact that the Malverne school district has been celebrating Juneteenth means a lot,” Lippencott said. “It shows a commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion that sometimes gets eroded in this climate.”
Stuart Oates, an adviser to the Lakeview NAACP Youth Council and a Malverne High alumnus, added, “In a time where it seems like a full-blown attack on the concept of DEI, it’s important that we have these reminders of unity, organization, trust, love and excellence. We celebrate each other, community, and all the great joys about being Black, and give homage to the foundation of this country and everything it stands for.”
