The Embrace Ideas Festival wrapped up Friday with a joy-filled Embrace Boston block party at the community college in Roxbury.
The festival is a yearly celebration of ideas about arts and culture, and the 3-day gathering is rooted in racial equity, healing, well being and joy.
The annual festival is always wrapped around Juneteenth, which is this coming Monday, so NBC10 Boston spoke to some block party attendees about the holiday and what these events mean to the community.
“Juneteenth really is a moment of jubilee. It's a moment of celebration. I think about the Jim Crow era where Juneteenth celebrations weren’t allowed and they weren’t allowed in public,” City Councilor Ruthzee Louijeune said.
“I hope that this continues to be something that happens more and more in the city and we’re moving in the direction of inclusion and that should be a priority that’s front and center," one woman said.
"It’s amazing to have these opportunities out here in the communities so that the people can come and see what all natural Black businesses have to offer them,” another woman said.
The block party was held at Roxbury Community College from 2:30-8 p.m. and aimed to celebrate artistic expression through the lively party that was headlined by Grammy Award-nominated music producer and DJ Just Blaze. The evening celebration was a joyful night of dancing, music and community.
NBC10 Boston, Telemundo Nueva Inglaterra and NBC Sports Boston are the proud media partners of the Embrace Ideas Festival hosted by Embrace Boston. The festival took place from June 14-16, the three days leading up to the Juneteenth holiday weekend.
