WORCESTER, Mass. - The Juneteenth Flag flying in Worcester and for the first time since 2021 it’s at the YWCA, not outside City Hall. The Worcester Black Heritage Committee said they’re proud to honor Juneteenth at the new space.

What You Need To Know

  • Communities across the country honoring Juneteenth on Thursday. The federal holiday commemorates the emancipation of enslaved African Americans in the U.S. and marks the day when the final group of enslaved people learned they’d been freed two and a half years after President Lincoln gave the Emancipation Proclamation

  • The Worcester Black Heritage Committee held the ceremony at the YWCA due to Worcester's Cultural Flag Program policy, which has been in place for at least a year

  • The Black Herittage Committee is hosting the annual Black Heritage Juneteenth Festival on Saturaday, June 21

Worcester’s Black Heritage Committee commemorated Juneteenth with their annual ceremony and flag raising.

“This is our fifth year doing it," WBHC volunteer Sha-Asia Medina said, "and we're excited that community showed up to show that this history and this moment in our time is important.”

This year marks the first year the Juneteenth ceremony wasn’t held at city hall due to Worcester’s Cultural Flag Program which states flags are typically displayed for a one‐day period, once a year.

When the Black Heritage Committee’s request to extend the flag being flown until Monday was denied, they said Deborah Hall, the YWCA’s first Black CEO, answered their call.

“When I heard that there was some, you know, issues or challenges around flying the Juneteenth Flag at City Hall," Hall said, "I offered our space.”

“It's important that we're in spaces that honor what it is the community wants and needs," Medina said. "And so, City Hall has been having a challenging time doing that in the last couple of months and years, really. And so, the YWCA has a mission that aligns with the legacy of Juneteenth, and we're really grateful that they offered the space. And it felt like the right fit for our flag raising.”

According to the city, Worcester’s policy is intended to ensure fairness and equity for all who seek to participate.

“Juneteenth reminds us that there's an ancestral strength embedded within black Americans,” City Councilor Khrystian King said during the ceremony.

Hall said honoring Juneteeth and the emancipation of enslaved African Americans is about acknowledging real history.

“We're living during a time when there's so much political divisiveness. DEI is being attacked. Books are being banned. You were told ‘everything you are’ is not valuable in this country right now," Hall said. "And so, now more than ever, we need to acknowledge history, real history, actual facts; and Juneteenth is a part of that.”

And Medina said it's important we know where we came from in order to know where we're going.

“We have to know our history," Medina said. "And again, the struggle for freedom continues for black folks in this country, in this community, and for people all across the world.”

Now the Worcester Black Heritage Committee is looking forward to welcoming the community to the Black Heritage Festival at Institute Park from noon to 8 p.m. on Saturday, June 21.