Celebrations were held all across Western New York on Saturday in honor of Juneteenth, now a federal holiday.

In Niagara Falls, the Juneteenth flag was flown at City Hall for the second year. This time, however, marks the first time the flag is flown high, as it was flown at half-staff last June in mourning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This year, the ceremony finally got the recognition it deserved, as the community joined event organizers and Niagara Falls Mayor Robert Restaino.

“Fortunately, we did one last year, so that helped us prepare for this year," said Jacob J. Fleming, Sr., the man who proposed the idea last year for the annual Juneteenth flag raising. "So we just got together, we added a few more people, we formed an actual Juneteenth committee for Niagara Falls for this year, 2021, and we were able to get this event together."

The ceremony also included guest speakers, live storytelling, remembering Black Wall Street 100 years later and tributes to deceased community members. All components of the ceremony were not only honoring the past, but inspiring the future, showing the power of Black History beyond the month of February.

“By having something like this in the summertime, we’re hoping that this carries on through September for the kids to know and understand that Black History is everyday," said this year's organizer Ken Hamilton, "and that it’s incumbent upon them to get good education so that they could go out and become a part of Black History by being the most excellent individuals they can be despite color.”

One of the ceremony’s highlights was the presenting of last year’s Juneteenth flag to Restaino, who shared his excitement to see the holiday get the recognition it deserves in the eyes of the law and to continue celebrating with the city this year.

“We didn’t let the pandemic stop us; last year we were able to celebrate in a much more muted way," Restaino said. "This is even more special because now we’re able to celebrate, and we’re able to celebrate as a nation, so it’s fabulous for us to be able to get out here on a beautiful day to celebrate this national holiday. It took 156 years for us to get here, but thanks be to God, we’re here, and we’ll celebrate today."

The celebration continued in Buffalo at the Johnnie B. Wiley Sports Pavilion for the first annual Freedom Festival. Hours after a parade on Jefferson Avenue, the community gathered for an afternoon of live musical performances, food, and vendors of unique goods.

The festival’s coordinators, Erie County Legislature candidate Dominique Calhoun and Buffalo mayoral candidate India Walton, also used the event as a platform to encourage African Americans to vote in the upcoming elections.

“The energy is incredible and unbelievable," Walton said. "This is Juneteenth weekend and it just so happens to fall right before Primary Day so we’re just encouraging everyone to get out and exercise their right to vote.”

“Make sure everyone gets out there and vote, June the twenty-second," Calhoun said. "Early voting ends on the twentieth, and polls are open until nine p.m. on June the twenty-second. Be the change.”

Former Buffalo Police officer and pioneer of Cariol’s Law, Cariol Horne, was also a guest speaker at the Freedom Festival and her, Juneteenth parallels her personal experience of fighting for justice as an African American.

“I felt like some things just did not make sense, and because it didn’t make sense, then I had to fight against it," Horne said. "Just like our ancestors had fought in order for us to be where we are today, I felt like I needed to fight for officers who do want to stop police brutality to be able to do that."

With Juneteenth now a federal holiday, celebrations will likely continue to grow in the coming years across the nation. With ties to the underground railroad running through both Niagara Falls and Buffalo, as well as the Queen city being home to one of the largest and longest running Juneteenth celebrations in the country, nowhere else will be able to do it quite like Western New York.

“Now that it’s a federal holiday, you can decide on which city you would like to come, but we would ask that you come to Buffalo because we’re the City of Good Neighbors," said Pastor Tim Newkirk, a Freedom Festival attendee.

"We have the longest parade strip and we can combine all of these different communities, pastors and organizations in order to bring unity in the community for the summer and you can look forward to it. Every year, we can look forward to this holiday, celebrating it. It’s a paid holiday so that’s the big thing for those coming from out of town, they can celebrate it knowing that they’re going to be paid for this day and they look forward to planning ahead.”