Juneteenth Festival: Jersey City’s ‘All About Us,’ a metaphor for black resilience
By Isiah Christie
Jersey City’s “All About Us” Juneteenth Festival has grown into an annual tradition that represents the city, not too differently from Philadelphia’s “Roots Picnic” or New York City’s annual marches and parades. The Hudson County event was heavily anticipated and touted as the area’s most significant event to celebrate the abolishment of slavery, ushering in a joyful crowd of African-American citizens that were not only celebrating the historical significance of the day, but their own personal freedom and togetherness.
And “All About Us”, despite some external turmoil, represented just that.
The event began with light, sunny spirits, featuring a center stage with exceptional music selection from local DJs. Attendees flooded the front of the field with dances, reveling in the hip-hop, soul, and house music built on the backs of African-American creativity. Around the stage was a fleet of vendors, food trucks and informational tents, offering plenty of activities to festival-goers. Popular stations included soul food restaurants, T-shirt vendors and a central section dedicated to serving a variety of alcoholic drinks.
However, the bright energy of the event collapsed in an unfortunate turn of events. A weather system of tropical proportions struck Jersey City in a bout of aggression, with thunderstorms littering the sky. Wind speeds of up to 14 mph were recorded, the humidity hit an all-day-high of 77%, and the temperature was at a summer-esque 92 °F. The destructive nature of the thunderstorm absolutely devastated the event, blowing over chairs, destroying local vendors’ tents and shutting down the central music stage. Citizens scrambled for safety, running to the closest tent, portable bathroom or general cover as the rain fell down like artillery. Many complained about difficulty breathing in the extremities, losing belongings to wind and fog, and having their clothes and shoes drenched.
The storm was fast-moving, beginning around 3PM and being gone about 30 to 45 minutes later. However, the aftermath resembled a city post-hurricane, and the upbeat energy of “All About Us” seemed to dissipate. Despite this, the crowd remained resilient and sought to make the most of the festival.
Such is why “All About Us” was a representation of African-American resilience – following a period of restoration and technological difficulties, vendors resumed operations, the concert stage was back on air, and everybody reset their chairs to sit out in the field and continue celebrating black joy and freedom. The remainder of the event, which ran until 8PM due to another storm, was a high-energy affair chock-full of great food, fun music, and general camaraderie. Locals still enjoyed the appearance of headliner hip-hop artist Jadakiss, and commutes home were of safe proportions.
It was beautiful to see the “All About Us” festival continue despite the tribulations of weather and end on a great note. It became a story to tell, a moment to remember, and strong proof that the annual tradition should proceed on an annual basis. Summer is here, Jersey City – and rain, sun, or storm – locals will celebrate their culture in solidarity.
