A Juneteenth celebration brought local history and community to the forefront in downtown Fresno.
A Juneteenth celebration hosted by The Alley and Fresno City and County Historical Society put a spotlight on local history and vendors in Fresno.
Held Wednesday at The Archive on Kern, the celebration was an opportunity for Fresnans to learn about the history of the Black community in Fresno, as well as an outlet for the historical society to show community members the work they have done to preserve local history and artifacts.
“We’re the keepers of Fresno’s cultural heritage, and sharing that heritage is paramount for us,” said Cami Cipolla, director of educational programs and services for the Fresno City and County Historical Society.
On top of presenting a talk with local artist Kámbrya Bailey and a panel discussion with community leaders and advocates, the celebration was filmed to become a part of the historical society’s oral history collection.
The historical society’s archive holds almost 300 oral history recordings, audio recordings of residents from as far back as WWII recounting their personal stories and experiences in Fresno County.
“You can sit and listen to the stories of some of these residents going through a period of history that isn’t always talked about from their perspective,” Cipolla said.
Of note is the Ethnic Oral History Project, a collection of recorded oral histories from Hispanic and Black community members in 1977 and 1978 recounting their own life stories, covering topics ranging from agriculture, civil rights and personal anecdotes.
“It’s really critical that youth of today and later are able to hear people that sound like them, that had the same journey that they did,” said Elizabeth Laval, president of the Fresno City and County Historical Society.
“We want that to be there for the future; we don’t only chronicle what happened in the past; we’re making history every day,” she added, referring to the oral history recordings they conducted during the Juneteenth celebration.
Present during the celebration was K’La Gonzalez, a 25-year-old local artist originally from San Jose.
“I love the fact that there’s so much history and they have black owned businesses, families [and] communities coming together,” said Gonzalez. “For Juneteenth, that’s a huge step forward.”
Gonzalez also said that events such as the Juneteenth celebration and Art Hop were instrumental in finding her place in the community within Fresno.
Although the celebration and Juneteenth are only for a day, Laval said that the historical society has more on the horizon to celebrate and preserve.
Having acquired the building in 2023, one of the reasons the Archive on Kern was chosen as the home for the historical society was its basement space, which the society plans on turning into a safe environment for historical artifacts.
Moreover, after applying and qualifying for Measure P funds, the society plans to create a studio within the Archive on Kern to allow residents to come and record their own oral histories. However, delays in the Measure P funds have put a stop to the historical society’s plans indefinitely.
“We are stuck until they free the funds,” Laval said.
Regardless, Laval explained that the historical society will continue its work in documenting and preserving the history of local residents in Fresno.
“We’ve been capturing the stories and treasures from everyone for so long,” Laval said, “and we were looking forward to sharing it with everyone.”
