Those who participated in this year’s Journey to Juneteenth Freedom Walk learned about national and local Black history.

Hosted by the city of Gainesville, the 5K Freedom Walk Saturday morning began at Depot Park proceeded through the Porters Quarters and Sugarhill communities where participants visited booths to talk about the history of the two historic Black neighborhoods in southwest and southeast Gainesville before returning to Depot Park.

“It is one of our premier events,” said Zeriah Folston, director of the Office of Equity and Inclusion for the city of Gainesville. “On the route, you may recognize or learn more about the landmarks. This walk speaks to how far we’ve come and how far we have left to go. This is also a great way where we can walk to stretch our legs and know more about our history and learn about those who helped shape our country to where it is today.”

According to the city of Gainesville, walking has played a huge role in the liberation of Black communities, from walking the Underground Railroad and walking through cities for marches and protests.

Juneteenth Walk: Local Juneteenth Freedom Walk

Music was provided by Eric “DJ E-LO” Lopez and singer Tradina Thomas led the singing of the Negro National Anthem.

Gainesville Mayor Harvey Ward and Gainesville City Commissioner for District 2, Ed Book, spoke before the walk.

“I’m really pleased with the Equity and Inclusion Office for working on this project for over a year to get this completed,” Ward said. “Let’s enjoy this Juneteenth weekend.”

“I enjoy doing events together because it shows how strong we are as a community,” Book said.

Ben Howort, manager at the Office of Equity and Inclusion, said “We host these events for people to come out and learn more about African American history.”

From 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Wednesday (June 19), which is the official national Juneteenth holiday, the city of Gainesville will host the “Journey to Juneteenth: The Jubilee Celebrating Arts and Culture and Education” at the Bo Diddley Community Plaza at 111 E. University Ave.

Bianca Evans, of Gainesville, participated in the walk and said she has been involved in the Journey to Juneteenth events for three years.

“This is a reminder of our history and taking the time out to never forget where we come from and know where we are going,” she said.

This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Juneteenth Freedom Walk in Gainesville includes Black history lessons