Saratoga Celebrates ‘Second Independence Day’ 

It was standing room only at the YMCA as Saratoga Springs held its annual Juneteenth celebration. 

The event took place June 19 and featured vendors, speakers, musical acts, dances and theatrical performances. This year was the fourth annual event in Saratoga Springs. The event wasn’t the only one to take place in the city. 

Later in the day, a new historic marker was unveiled on Congress Street to honor a predominantly Black neighborhood which was destroyed as part of urban renewal. Another plaque honoring one of two churches destroyed in the project was dedicated on June 21 behind City Hall on Maple Street. 

While Juneteenth has only been a federal holiday since 2021, the holiday’s origins go back to the Civil War. In 1863, the Emancipation Proclamation was issued by the United States which freed all enslaved people in states rebelling in the US, according to the Congressional Research Service.

While the proclamation was issued in 1863, it didn’t reach the last Confederate state — Texas — until 1865. On June 19, 1865, Union forces reached Galveston, Texas and issued an order announcing the end of the war and the freedom of all enslaved people in the state. Celebrations started in 1866, and it became a Texas state holiday in 1980. 

The holiday is often referred to as the “second Independence Day” in reference to the idea that many people in the US weren’t fully free until slavery was abolished. 

One of the board members behind the celebration, Donald Hyman, said he first heard about the holiday when he was in the Air Force and stationed in Alaska. He said the base commander was an African American man from Louisiana who celebrated the holiday on post. Hyman said he became involved in celebrations as an educator as a part of Schenectady’s celebrations. 

During the June 19 ceremony, Hyman performed a piece about famed author Booker T Washington. He was joined by several others who spoke about the holiday, performed songs, and acted out parts of the book “Big Jim and the White Boy.” 

Outside of the celebrations at the YMCA, a new historical marker was unveiled near the Embassy Suites on Congress Street. Saratoga Springs Supervisor Matthew Veitch said the marker came as a result of funds allocated to supervisors by the county to improve their municipalities. In creating the marker, Veitch said he worked with the Frederick Allen Lodge on the specific language. 

The Congress Street Neighborhood had been a prominent neighborhood for the Black community in Saratoga Springs. It featured not just housing but many Black owned businesses and cultural areas. Much of it was raised in the 1970s during Urban Renewal which also saw two Black churches destroyed and merged with others. Both these churches also received plaques. One of said plaques was dedicated June 21. 

“This means more than you will ever know,” said Joy King, one of members of the Lodge. “It’s very important that Saratoga recognize and honor everything the Black community has brought to the City of Saratoga Springs. This is a first step to show this is a very diverse community.”