Richmond Juneteenth parade winds through city; festival honors community members

The city's Juneteenth parade moved through Richmond on Saturday morning before giving way to an afternoon festival at Nicholl Park, where organizers inducted six people into a newly created Juneteenth Hall of Fame and named the event's first youth royal court.

On the main stage, Michelle Milam, crime prevention manager for the Richmond Police Department and a lead organizer of the event, presented awards to the year's honorees before turning attention to the new Hall of Fame.

"Juneteenth is about celebration. It's about remembering our past. It's about celebrating our future," Milam told the crowd. "But more than all that, Juneteenth is about remembering why we're doing what we do."

Grand Marshal Marena Brown, executive director of the Contra Costa Youth Service Bureau since 2023, was among the first Hall of Fame inductees. Milam cited her work across Richmond's civic landscape, including the Youth Services Bureau and Shields Reed Neighborhood Council. Fred Franklin, a graphic artist and cartoonist who has donated work to community organizations in the Iron Triangle for more than 35 years, was also named grand marshal and inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Three people were inducted posthumously. Abigail Sims, a literacy teacher who volunteered at the city services tent at Juneteenth events for years. Johnnie George-Towns, a longtime Juneteenth committee member, was honored alongside her daughter, Juanita Towns, who accepted the award. Jose Davis worked in facilities maintenance for the City of Richmond for more than 30 years.

Joe L. Fisher Sr., associate publisher of the Richmond Post and a real estate broker who has served on the Coronado Neighborhood Council and other civic bodies for decades, received the Lifetime of Service Award.

The committee also named its first youth grand marshals and inaugural royal court, a group of honor-roll students from across the West Contra Costa Unified School District who marched in the parade.

Ivan, a Richmond-born dancer and artist with a following on social media, and Xa'viar Bennett, who runs youth workshops on self-esteem and has written and produced her own short film, were named youth grand marshals.

Genesis Johnson, a recent Hercules High School graduate, was crowned Miss Juneteenth. Zachariah, an incoming eighth-grader, was crowned Mr. Juneteenth.

Performers scheduled for the day included Dede Simon, Atia Carroll, Sharonda G, and the Dwayne Patton Leather Band.

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