Macon Black Culture Juneteenth 2025 Signature Events
MBC JUNETEENTH JR. DEBUTANTE
PRESENTATION
Date: June 7, 2025
Location: Douglass Theatre
A celebration of Black girlhood, legacy, and leadership. This elegant evening honors 4th–7th grade girls who complete confidence, culture, and sisterhood workshops, culminating in a formal presentation before the community.
TALES FROM THE
CULTURE: HBCU EDITION – COMING HOME
Date: June 18, 2025
5PM–7PM
Location: Sunset Lounge
This live storytelling experience, hosted by Amber Tiffany Jones-King, features powerful voices such as Danny Glover, Erika Mack, and Vinson Muhammad reflecting on identity, legacy, and HBCU excellence.
JUNETEENTH MOVIE EVENT
Date: June 19, 2025 | 6PM
Location: Poplar Street, Downtown Macon
A community gathering honoring the spirit of togetherness with food, music, games, and fireworks. Guests are encouraged to bring chairs and tents for a relaxing evening.
JUNETEENTH PARADE + TAILGATE EXPERIENCE – HOMECOMING
EDITION
Date: June 22, 2025 | Parade at 4PM | Tailgate to follow
Location: Downtown Macon
The culminating citywide celebration featuring parade entries from schools, organizations, and creatives, followed by a high-energy tailgate with food trucks, vendors, bounce houses, fireworks, and live music.
For details and contacts go to maconblack culture.Com
Kwanzaa Cultural Access
Center and Torchlight
Academy
MACON JUNETEENTH EVENTS 2025 June 13- 22
20th Annual Real Talk Hip Hop Summit, Friday, June 13 at the Douglass Theatre, 10 am- Noon, Art of Hip Hop Workshops and Panel Discussion; 7-9 pm Live Concert
Pleasant Hill Reunion Banquet, Friday, June 13, 6-8 pm at The Rosewood Center, $25, Presented by the Pleasant Hill Reunion Committee
33rd Annual Juneteenth Freedom Festival, Saturday, June 14, 3-9:30 pm at Tattnall Square Park, featuring Food and Art Vendors, Black Union Soldiers Exhibit, Community Information Presenters, Jazz/Funk/Soul Concert by The MacTown Groove Ensemble, African & Modern Dance Performance by Ajile Axam’s Dancical Productions Company, Musical Presentation by Otis Redding Foundation Youth, Hometown Super MCs Hip Hop Showcase, Free admission
Pleasant Hill Reunion June 14, Mattie Hubbard Jones Playground/Park Noon to 5 pm, Free
Fathers and Family Juneteenth Celebration, Douglass Theatre, June 15, 3-8 pm, Featuring Dr. Chike Akua , From History To Destiny: What Does It Mean To Be Black?, Lil’ John Roberts and The Senators Live in Concert, Spectacular Jazz/Funk Showcase, Fathers and Family Celebration Activities, Admission Free
Black History Van Tours from Terminal Station, June 16-20, 5 pm each day, except 10 am on June 19th, Free Admission, Donations Welcome, Call 478-718-8067 for Reservations
3rd Annual Juneteenth Parade & Tailgate Party with Fireworks, partnering with event organizer Macon Black Culture, June 22nd, 4 pm, Downtown Macon
ART AND FOOD
VENDORS NEEDED, CALL 478-737-3319 OR
478-718-8067
For Other Scheduled Juneteenth Events in Macon go to: www.douglasstheatre.org, maconblackculture.com, JuneteenthMacon.com, Kwanzaa Cultural Access Center Inc. Facebook, middlegablackpages.com, or Cgcbb.org (Central Coalition of Black Businesses)
SPONSORED BY:
The Griffith Foundation, Georgia Council for the Arts, GA Power Company, Douglass Theatre, DA Anita Howard Project Rise, Represent GA, Middle Georgia Black Pages, Central GA Coalition of Black Businesses, Community Foundation of Central GA, Dr. Ralph Austin, Burton Medical Group,Visit Macon, Jones Brothers Mortuary, 100 Black Men of Middle GA, Macon Bibb County Fire and Sheriff’s Department
Kwanzaa Cultural
Access Center /Torchlight
Academy Presents
A Fathers and Family Juneteenth Celebration, Sunday, June 15, 3-8 pm, at The Douglass Theatre, featuring at 3 pm, Clark Atlanta University Cultural Scholar Dr. Chike Akua, From History To Destiny: What Does It Mean To Be Black? Food and Art Vendors Gallery, Fathers and Family Appreciation Activities, LIVE IN CONCERT The Legendary Lil’ John Roberts and the Senators (Superheroes of Jazz Fusion) Admission Free
WHY WE SAY STAY WOKE by Fadil Muhammad
The terms “woke”, “stay woke”, “wake up”, and the idea of “wokeness” originated in the Black American community in the early 1900s as a warning against injustice and being targets of racial violence. It was an action call for black unity, social activism, to be aware of truth and a worldwide rising need for knowledge of history and self, positive self identity, and the power of self determination, recognizing self worth vs. the worthlessness falsified by white supremacist dehumanization.
One of the first and most popular Black leaders to advocate the urgency of black people being awake was the powerful Jamaican Pan Africanist the Honorable Marcus Mosiah Garvey in 1923 demanding, “Wake up Ethiopia!, Wake up Africa!.” The Nation of Islam in Detroit in the 1930s taught that the Black community needed a spiritual awakening from its state of mental
sleep, and in 1938 blues artist Leadbelly in his song “Scottsboro Boys,” uttered the warning words “stay woke”. In 1959 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered the sermon “Remaining Awake Through A Great Revolution” and numerous other leaders and artists including Erykah Badu in her 2008 song “Master Teacher” have emphasized the term “stay woke” in their expressions.
In American society today it is very common to hear the confusion, misappropriation and misapplication of the terms “woke” and “wokeness.” “Stay woke’s” original meaning by early 1900s black leaders and luminaries has become hijacked by liberal and conservative leaders, social pundits, Republicans, and prominent voices in the White community as terms of self excuse, contempt, belittlement, disdain, negativity, disgrace and dishonor in a manner that has nothing to do with its intended value and significance.
However, it’s plain to see that the alternative to being awake or “woke” is to be asleep to what is going on; something that no one can afford to do in this hour and in these times of the world in which we live. Regardless of one’s race, religion, ethnicity, color or creed, given the urgency of the times, Jesus’ admonition to his disciples has a useful value of warning for all as he prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane at a most crucial time, “Could you not remain awake one hour with me?”
We also must not only remain alert and act with wisdom, but we must know our history and not allow our ancestors’ invaluable truth and wisdom be stolen, distorted and misrepresented. Therefore, “Stay Woke.”
