2025 Downtown Akron Juneteenth Celebration Welcomes 1,000 to Newly Renovated Lock 3

On Sunday, June 1, 2025, an estimated 1,000 people filtered into the beautifully renovated Lock 3 for a long afternoon of good music, engaging activities, and family fun at the Downtown Akron Juneteenth Celebration.

This was the fifth year in a row Downtown Akron Partnership (DAP) has facilitated Juneteenth festivities in the neighborhood, but Juneteenth has been celebrated far longer than that in Akron itself, with events spanning neighborhoods and decades.

The theme for this year’s celebration was Revisiting Our History: Reclaiming Our Community. According to Juneteenth planning committee co-chair Ebony Hill, this theme was both a remembrance and a charge. “Juneteenth calls us to honor the struggles of our past, embrace our collective responsibility, and actively shape a future rooted in unity, healing, and Black excellence,” she said. “By reclaiming our community, we restore pride, deepen connection, and affirm our power to build what comes next.”

In line with this theme, we set up seven distinct tents and held small-group workshops all afternoon, which were designed to honor the seven principles of Kwanzaa. The workshops were as follows:

“Celebrate and Sustain: Reclaiming Our Culture” (Umoja – Unity)

This workshop was led by Da’Shika Street in the Cultural Heritage Tent, where participants made their own clack fans as an act of appreciating and preserving African American culture.

“Legacy of Learning: Reclaiming Our Education” (Kujichagulia – Self-Determination)

This workshop was led by Kwa Hill in the Education and Empowerment Tent, where participants took part in an interactive discussion on discovering their West African day names as an act of renewing respect for educational heritage.

“Roots of Wellness: Reclaiming Our Health” (Nia – Purpose)

This workshop was led by Leland Snell in the Health and Wellness Tent, where participants learned traditional health practices and at-home body movements for modern wellness.

“Embracing Elegance: Reclaiming Our Beauty” (Kuumba – Creativity)

This workshop was led by Aqillah Al-Qaadir in the Beauty and Culture Tent, where participants watched cornrow and headwrap demonstrations as an act of deepening appreciation for African American beauty.

“Prosperity Pathways: Reclaiming Our Wealth” (Ujamaa – Cooperative Economics)

This workshop was led by Shalonda Lee in the Financial Freedom Tent, where participants took part in an interactive budget game as an act of empowering themselves with financial management knowledge.

“Loud & Clear: Reclaiming Our Voice” (Ujima – Collective Work & Responsibility)

This workshop was led by the NAACP Youth Group and Demetrius Falconer in the Advocacy and Action Tent, where participants took part in an interactive discussion aimed to equip themselves for effective advocacy work.

Local poet Jason Blakely also led a special poetry and voice workshop in this tent.

“Spiritual Roots: Reclaiming Our Spirituality” (Imani – Faith)

This workshop was led by Angie and Cynthia Higgins in the Spirit and Faith tent, where participants took part in a spiritual clearing activity as an act of understanding and appreciating spiritual diversity.

Workshops took place at 12:30, 1:15, 2:45, and 3:30 pm, and were free to attend.

These cultural tents and workshops were a major highlight of the celebration. Additionally, food and retail vendors abounded, as did nonprofit organizations set up at tables to share resources with eventgoers. Retail and nonprofit vendors were situated along the perimeter of Lock 3’s Swensons Game Patio, while most food vendors were set up on the Main Street sidewalk in front of the Buchholzer Balcony.

Live performances on the stage of the Maynard Performance Pavilion took place throughout the day and were warmly received: Stories in the African oral tradition by Beverly Lloyd and ElAnee Barclay Jones of the Cleveland Association of Black Storytellers, spoken word by Xposyur, a drum and dance performance by Drum Call with Embracing Ur Journey, live music by Resolve, and a headlining musical act by The Tyrone G Experience. DJ Vinnie G spun tunes between acts.

How the Downtown Akron Juneteenth Celebration Came to Be

In 2020, DAP facilitated partnerships between a few other Akron organizations looking to bring the community together by showcasing gospel music in public space in June 2020. Over the span of a few years, those simple public performances transformed into what today is the Downtown Akron Juneteenth Celebration, after numerous conversations with local musicians and community figures. The event date is scheduled each year with a mind to avoid planning any activity that would conflict with any other Juneteenth programming across the city.

Although the celebration is presented by DAP, planning is led by a committee made up of members of the local Black community, including co-chairs Ebony Hill and Will Blake, along with Reva Goldman, Jada Moore, and numerous other volunteers. The committee meets throughout the year to discuss how best to shape the direction of the event, and how to engage the community in meaningful, joyful ways. DAP’s mission is to promote and build a vibrant and valuable downtown, where people of all backgrounds are explicitly invited to spend time in, and see themselves in, the neighborhood. We fulfill part of this mission by helping facilitate cultural events, such as Juneteenth, the Downtown Akron Lunar New Year Celebration, Akron Latin Festival, and the Sakura Festival.

This year’s poster artwork was created by local artist Maliyah Clark, who created an illustration that aimed “to highlight the vast cultural impact that Black people have had in America.” The tree in her artwork represents the roots Black people have established in America, and also the ways Black culture has changed and grown through the years.

Interested in joining the planning committee for next year’s celebration? Email us at info@downtownakron.com.

The 2025 Downtown Akron Juneteenth Celebration was presented by DAP and planned by the Downtown Akron Juneteenth Planning Committee. The celebration was supported by the City of Akron, Lock 3, and the Summit County Prosecutor’s Office. Additional support was provided by Knight Foundation, Ohio Arts Council, Akron Community Foundation, Akron Civic Commons, and GAR Foundation.

Photos: Matt Fox