Juneteenth looks different for community leaders this year
NORTHEAST MISSISSIPPI, Miss. (WCBI) – Juneteenth looks different this year for some community organizations.
In January, President Donald Trump signed an executive order entitled, “Ending Radical And Wasteful Government DEI Programs And Preferencing.”
This action led many universities to discontinue their DEI programs and businesses to withdraw their support for related activities.
Juneteenth celebrations have long been a symbol of freedom and unity, especially here in Northeast Mississippi.
But this year, that freedom feels more fragile.
With federal DEI programs rolled back by new executive orders, some say Black cultural celebrations are under quiet attack.
“It’s kind of come under attack in terms of the diversified, equity, and inclusion, so it has restricted some people from participating and probably discouraged some people from even hosting a Juneteenth celebration. And of course, what it means for us, (is that) it’s an extra motivation,” said Leroy Brooks, the Juneteenth Festival Coordinator for Columbus.
The federal holiday, Juneteenth, is observed on Thursday, June 19.
It commemorates the day the last group of slaves was told they were free in Texas in 1865, two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed.
Leroy Brooks and others have kept the Columbus celebration alive for 28 years—through rain, rising costs, and now, reduced support.
Ester Dabney is the Pontotoc County Juneteenth Committee Co-Founder and Historian.
She said she has also faced setbacks this year because of the new executive order against DEI.
“Funding was a lot easier before this year. We were able to get a lot more donations from a lot more corporations and companies than this time,” said Dabney.
To make up for the lack of funds, Dabney said they’re applying for grants with organizations who still support minority groups.
But despite the challenges, this year’s celebration is bringing in new energy—especially from the next generation.
“It’s important to talk about Juneteenth for people and the community to know what our ancestors went through what they went through and how they got freed,” said Markarri Rucker, Tenn Miss Juneteenth Pontotoc County 2025.
Still, in the face of shifting national priorities, the local message is clear.
“Juneteenth is a celebration of freedom. And not so much for the African-American community, but the community itself. There’s so much history in our community that we’re just not aware of, so it’s a time to talk about freedom, but also a time to talk about what is the history that is unknown to all the people that lives in our community,” said Yulanda Haddix, the President of the Stark Vegas Juneteenth Committee for Unity.
In Starkville, and across the South, the fight to preserve cultural celebration is more than political—it’s personal. And those who keep showing up… are proving that freedom is still worth the fight.
“Freedom is not freedom unless we’re able to share it,” said Haddix.
