Arts & Entertainment Event highlights of the week!
SportsWise
A little help from your friends: The SportsWise team discusses the NFL's controversial "tush push," where teammates physically push their own players into scoring positions.
Cover Story: Juneteenth
American history is not a steady march toward greater equality, democracy and individual rights. Because of a competing set of illiberal values and interests, it has often been “two steps forward and one step back.” The Declaration of Independence was followed by 90 years of fighting among slaveholding and free interests, and the Civil War, before all enslaved people were finally freed on Juneteenth, 1865. Now Donald Trump’s executive orders look like an unprecedented effort to roll back liberties. Where do we want to go as a nation from here?
From the Streets
A 4-foot Mayan frieze formerly in a private Chicago collection is being returned to the Mexican government with the help of the National Museum of Mexican Art (NMMA) in Pilsen.
The Playground
DISCLAIMER: The views, opinions, positions or strategies expressed by the authors and those providing comments are theirs alone, and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or positions of StreetWise.
Dave Hamilton, Creative Director/Publisher dhamilton@streetwise.org
Julie Youngquist, Executive director jyoungquist@streetwise.org
Ph: 773-334-6600 Office: 2009 S. State St., Chicago, IL, 60616
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT RECOMMENDATIONS
Compiled by Dave Hamilton
Gala for the Whole Family!
Celebration of Authors Gala: A Family Friendly FUN-draiser PlayMakers Laboratory (PML) presents the Celebration of Authors Gala: A Family Friendly FUN-draiser, the company’s annual gala and a family-friendly, interactive festival all wrapped into one fun-filled evening on Friday, June 20 from 6:30 – 10:30 p.m. at the National Museum of Mexican Art, 1852 W. 19th St. The festive evening will feature food and drink, games, a silent auction, a 360-photo booth and, live performances of stories written by Chicago students throughout the 2024/25 school year, adapted and performed by PML company members. All proceeds support PML’s creative writing programming in partnership with Chicago Public Schools. PML will also present its “Storyteller of the Year Award” to PlayMaker alum Mary Winn Heider for her work in supporting youth voices through her national platform. Tickets are $50 for youth and $75 for adults at playmakerslab.org/events/celebration-of-authors
Spooky! Kooky!
Windy City Paranormal Festival
The supernatural takes center stage as Windy City Paranormal Festival presents four thrilling days of mystery, magic, and the macabre. Unlike any other paranormal event, it isn’t just about ghost hunting—it’s an immersive, social celebration of storytelling, history, and the wonderfully weird. This 21+ festival, spanning some of Chicago’s best venues—including Untitled Supper Club, Comedy Bar, and Punch Bowl Social—invites guests to dive headfirst into a stacked lineup of eerie entertainment. From spine-tingling live storytelling and haunted bar investigations to a seductive supernatural burlesque show (BOO!-lesque) and the ultimate retro bash, “Haunted 80’s Prom,” there’s something for every seeker of the strange. Learn more and purchase in-person or virtual tickets at windycityparafest.com
Visit Giveashi•t!
Andersonville Midsommarfest
Now in its 59th year, Midsommarfest celebrates the neighborhood’s Swedish origins, along with up-and-coming LGBTQIA+ artists. Admission is a $10 suggested donation. Proceeds from donations and beverage sales go directly back to the Andersonville Chamber of Commerce, a 501c6 non-profit organization, to support festival expenses, neighborhood events, small business networking events, neighborhood beautification – and over a dozen local non-profits. Make sure to visit the Giveashi*t tent, with all proceeds benefiting StreetWise! June 13, 5-10 p.m.; June 14 noon-10 p.m.; June 15 noon - 9 p.m. on Clark St., from Foster Ave. to Gregory St. Learn more at andersonville.org/midsommarfest/
I'll Be Back!
‘The Terminator’ Live in Concert
The Auditorium, 50 E. Ida B. Wells Drive, and The Chicago Philharmonic continue the Auditorium Philms Concert Series, a multi-media experience presenting iconic films brought to life with scores performed in concert, such as “The Terminator.” The beloved sci-fi film—which celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2024—will play while an all-electric chamber orchestra performs the high-octane score composed by Brad Fiedel with in-sync dialogue and sound effects from the original film. June 13 at 7:30 p.m., Tickets start at $60 at auditoriumtheatre.org
Food & Fun!
Thai Festival Chicago Experience Thailand’s vibrant sights, sounds, and flavors at the Thai Festival Chicago, returning June 14, 10 a.m. - 9 p.m., & June 15, 11 a.m. - 7 p.m., on the grounds of Thorek Hospital, 851 W. Irving Park Rd. This FREE, family-friendly event brings together the heart of Thai culture for a weekend full of festivities, food, and fun! The festival will include 30+ authentic Thai food vendors, cultural and artisan vendors, special guests and celebrities from Thailand, and cultural live performances. Visit www.thaifestchicago.com for a full schedule.
Finding Humor!
‘Iraq, But Funny’
A raucous satire about five generations of Assyrian women reclaiming their stories, as narrated by a British guy. Making its world premiere at Lookingglass Theatre, Ensemble Member Atra Asdou’s original dark comedy jauntily marches through the Ottoman Empire to modern-day U.S.A. exploring history, family and dysfunction. Playing through July 20 at the Water Tower Water Works, 163 E. Pearson St. Tickets start at $30 at lookingglasstheatre.org
A Diva's Farewell!
Karen Slack
Lyric Opera of Chicago’s Learning and Civic Engagement division, Lyric Unlimited, presents the final performance in soprano Karen Slack’s three-part recital series as Lyric Unlimited’s 2024/25 Artist-in-Residence. Inspired by her Grammy Award-winning album
“Beyond the Years,” the recital takes place on June 14, at 2 p.m. at First United Methodist Church at the Chicago Temple, 77 W. Washington St. Tickets are $20 at lyricopera.org
Deck the Walls!
Old Town Art Fair
Artwork hung on fences for the first fair in 1950; now it draws 200+ juried fine artists in diverse media: mixed media drawings, paintings, photography, ceramics, glass, fiber, jewelry, wood, metal, stone. You’ll also find a garden walk, food court, children’s corner and live music: jazz, swing, folk, fusion and blues. In Old Town Triangle: Lincoln Park West/Wisconsin/Menomonee/ Orleans/North Park; June 14, 10 a.m. - 7 p.m.; June 15, 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. Learn more at oldtownartfair.org
On the Move
Dance Month Continues!
Chicago Dance Month presents a series of short, site-specific performances that wends its way through public parks, inviting audience members to discover hidden pockets of movement. June 17 & 24 at Palmisano Park, 2700 S. Halsted St. at 5:30 p.m. FREE
Digital, Smidgital!
Chicago Book and Paper Fair
Booksellers from across the Midwest and the USA will be offering fine antiquarian, rare, collectible, first edition and other books, ephemera and maps. June 14, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m., at Chicago Journeymen Plumbers Union Hall, 1340 W. Washington Blvd. Admission is $10, $5 for seniors and students.
The NFL's 'Tush Push'
John: What is your opinion of the NFL Tug Rule or "tush push"?
William: It is maybe a little inappropriate, considering where they’re getting tugged. I’m a little behind on this.
John: Should it be intact or illegal?
William: I think it should be illegal.
John: Why?
William: It might look inappropriate, particularly if kids are watching. They tend to imitate what they see and hear anyway.
John: Shouldn’t the parents explain to them?
William: They should, but a lot of parents now don’t give them any guidance. They think TV and Nintendo are great babysitters.
Russell: The NFL owners put it to a vote at the spring meeting May 21 and the winners were the Philadelphia Eagles, the losers were Kansas City. Kansas City got beaten by the Tush Push and the Eagles in Super Bowl LIX last March. It’s a Philly specialty when short yardage is needed, basically a quarterback sneak with the offensive line giving him a “tush push” over the line. It has been successful 91.3% of the time since 2022, according to Yahoo Sports.
John: The trophy is named after the Green Bay coach, Vince Lombardi. It was a slap to Vince Lombardi keeping the rule. The last Super Bowl was like watching a 1930s rugby line. It reminds me of the Great Depression. I want football to be high-speed and big plays. Philadelphia doesn’t play that game. That was what was wrong with the Super Bowl this year.
William: I could go for more high-speed football. It is kind of sedentary, especially the Bears. I like to see higher scores in football. I agree with John on the responsibility of the parents. This is the kind of thing they should be teaching their kids. I will say the same thing about the legal drinking age, legal smoking age and curfews. That should be the responsibility of the parents and not the government. A lot of them just want to horse around on their smartphones. But on the other side is parents who are working – twoand three-income households -- and don’t get to be with their kids.
Russell: The teams that complained, they can’t complain now, because the Tush Push lives on for at least another season. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Eagles, the Ravens, Jaguars, the Saints, the Browns, the Lions, the Dolphins, the Patriots, the
Jets and the Tennessee Titans all voted to keep the Tush Push on a motion brought by Green Bay. Kansas City sat it out, so only 22 teams voted to change the NFL rule book – two teams short. Eagles center Jason Kelce argued on behalf of Philadelphia that it’s not that dangerous.
John: It’s going to be around for at least one more year. The Philadelphia Eagles might as well be the favorite to go back to the Super Bowl. The following year, you will have a lot of injuries in the NFL. If they stay healthy, I can’t see any team, thanks to the Tush Push, that can beat this team. Unless you get better defense from the Green Bay Packers or the Kansas City Chiefs. They did the Eagles a favor.
Any comments, suggestions or topic ideas for the SportsWise team? Email StreetWise Editor Suzanne Hanney at suzannestreetwise@yahoo.com
Vendors (l-r) Russell Adams, William Plowman and John Hagan chat about the world of sports.
60 Years OF PROGRESS IN eXPanDIng rIghts IS BEING ROLLED BACK BY TRUMP − A PATTERN THAT’S
all
too FaMIl Iar IN US HISTORY
by Philip Klinkner &
For many Americans, Donald Trump’s headspinning array of executive orders in the early days of his second term look like an unprecedented effort to roll back democracy and the rights and liberties of American citizens.
American history is not a steady march toward greater equality, democracy and individual rights. America’s commitment to these liberal values has competed with an alternative set of illiberal values that hold that full American citizenship should be limited by race, ethnicity, gender and class.
lighted its commitments to democracy and human rights as a way of contrasting itself from its enemies.
The most famous example of this conflict is the Jim Crow era after Reconstruction, when many of the political and legal rights gained by African Americans in the Civil War era were swept away by disenfranchisement, segregation and discrimination. From roughly 1870 until 1940, democracy and equal rights were retreating, not advancing, leaving what was described in the 1960s by President Lyndon Johnson as “the crippling legacy of bigotry and injustice.”
Today, the Trump administration is seeking to roll back America’s commitment to equality and engaging in a broad effort to limit – if not outright deny – the rights, liberties and benefits of democracy to all Americans.
Progress, then rollbacks
The biggest gains in African American rights came during the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, World War II and the Cold War, when the United States confronted enemies that Americans believed contradicted its liberal values –the British monarchy, Southern slaveholders, fascist dictators and communist tyrants. The United States high-
But once the pressures of war faded, America’s illiberal values reasserted themselves. With the end of the Revolutionary War and the Civil War, the movement for greater equality stalled and many of the previous gains were rolled back.
The onset of World War II and then the Cold War forced Americans to renew their commitment to democracy and human rights for all Americans. This period is often described as the Second Reconstruction.
Like the First Reconstruction a century earlier, the federal government helped to ensure civil and voting rights for African Americans. These efforts laid the groundwork for advancing the political and civil rights of women, other racial and ethnic groups, immigrants, disabled persons and, eventually, members of the gay and lesbian community.
But like the First Reconstruction, these changes generated intense backlash.
Rogers M. Smith
Illustration by Rob Dobi
bIgger than ant I-DeI
Since the demise of the Cold War over 30 years ago, the Republican Party has increasingly sided with those seeking to roll back the gains of the Second Reconstruction.
Even before Trump first ran for president, the Republican Party began adopting nativist, anti-immigration policies. In 2012, a Republican-dominated Supreme Court gutted a key provision of the Voting Rights Act, the landmark 1965 law barring racial discrimination in voting that was one of the signal achievements of the Second Reconstruction.
In 2016, Trump rose to the Republican nomination by expressing and amplifying the racist and xenophobic views of many white Americans, including the claim that Barack Obama was born outside of the U.S., that Mexican immigrants were criminals and rapists, and that the U.S. should close its borders to anyone from Muslim countries.
Since his second inauguration, Trump has mounted a fullscale effort to undermine the policies of the Second Reconstruction. This effort has been masked as an attack on diversity, equity and inclusion – or DEI – policies. According to Trump and other critics of DEI, these policies are themselves racist, since they allegedly single out white Americans for shame and scorn.
As scholars of race and American politics, we believe that, overall, DEI initiatives have combated racial discrimination and expanded the pools of talented people who can contribute to the nation’s progress.
The Trump administration’s effort to end DEI programs is really an attack on decades of efforts by the federal government to make good on the promise of America: to engage in rigorous nondiscrimination efforts and open up opportunities for all.
One of Trump’s first executive orders, which prominently featured abandonment of DEI policies, also repealed a 60-year-old executive order signed by President Johnson mandating “affirmative action” to end widespread discrimination by the federal government and its contractors.
IMInat Ion
IMInat Ion?
These diversity initiatives have for more than 50 years included requirements that beneficiaries of these policies must be qualified for the benefits they obtain.
But to Trump and many conservatives, such policies force employers to engage in racial and gender quotas to prove that they don’t discriminate. Furthermore, these efforts to end discrimination, according to Trump’s executive order, “diminish the importance of individual merit, aptitude, hard work, and determination,” leading to “disastrous consequences.”
In other words, Trump and others claim that efforts to end discrimination are themselves a form of discrimination and force the hiring of unqualified and incompetent people.
Trump made this view clear in his comments on the recent collision between a passenger airliner and a military helicopter in Washington, D.C. Before any formal investigation, Trump alleged that the crash resulted from Obama and Biden administration efforts to diversify the Federal Aviation Administration staff. Such efforts, he suggested, elevate unqualified people.
“If they don’t have a great brain … they’re not going to be good at what they do and bad things will happen,” he said.
Efforts to reverse DEI have been accompanied by other antidiversity moves. One example: According to a news release, the Defense Department will no longer use “official resources” to mark “Black History Month, Women’s History Month, Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, Pride Month, National Hispanic Heritage Month, National Disability Employment Awareness Month, and National American Indian Heritage Month.”
UnDoIng 19th-centUrY aDvances
The attack on DEI goes beyond the federal government. Other executive orders mandate that K-12 schools as well as colleges and universities end DEI programs, since they are “anti-American, subversive, harmful, and false ideologies.”
Instead, Trump insists that schools engage only in “patriotic education.”
Such a policy will almost certainly prevent schools from honestly addressing the ways in which racial, ethnic and gender discrimination have influenced America’s past and present.
The Trump administration is attacking the First Reconstruction as well. Another Trump executive order seeks to end birthright citizenship for children of unauthorized alien residents.
That move would limit the 14th Amendment, one of the constitutional cornerstones of the First Reconstruction. Passed in 1868 in order to guarantee citizenship rights for African Americans, it begins by stating:
“All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.”
This provision was included in order to explicitly overturn the notorious 1857 Supreme Court decision, Dred Scott v. Sandford, that ruled that African Americans were not citizens and consequently “they had no rights which the white man was bound to respect.”
PUshback ca PacI t Y
How far can the Trump administration go in its efforts to undo the Second Reconstruction?
Numerous legal challenges have already been filed. In the case of the executive order limiting birthright citizenship, a lower federal court judge appointed by President Ronald Reagan blocked the order, calling it “blatantly unconstitutional.”
Many of these cases will ultimately be decided by the Supreme Court, which under Chief Justice John Roberts has been willing to overturn long-established equal rights precedents. Besides its 2012 gutting of the Voting Rights Act, in 2022 the court limited the reproductive rights of women by overturning its 1973 decision, Roe v. Wade Most recently, in 2023 the court ended a 45-year precedent that allowed colleges and universities to engage in limited forms of affirmative action in order to achieve more student diversity.
Yet despite years of attacks by conservatives and now the Trump administration, most efforts to end discrimination and open doors to all Americans, including DEI, remain popular. And the groups empowered by the Second Reconstruction – racial and ethnic minorities, women, immigrants, the LGBTQ community – are far more numerous and have far more legal and political resources available with which to fight back than those that were aided by the First Reconstruction.
There are now no government pressures driving Americans to make greater progress toward democracy and equal rights for all, as in the relatively brief earlier periods of significant reform in America.
But those reforms have given many more Americans the capacity to push back against policies that violate both American values and American interests.
Philip Klinkner is the James S. Sherman Professor of Government at Hamilton College.
Rogers M. Smith is Emeritus Professor of Political Science at the University of Pennsylvania.
Courtesy of The Conversation.
Compiled by Suzanne Hanney
JUneteenth IN street WIse THROUGH THE 2023
2022
“What, to the slave is the Fourth of July?” Frederick Douglass asked.
Indeed, President Joe Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act on June 17, 2021 in a White House ceremony that included Chicago’s own Rep. Danny K. Davis (D-7th district) and Opal Lee, a 94-year-old former teacher who had made symbolic 2½ mile walks every year to commemorate the 2½-year gap between Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation on Jan. 1, 1863 and actual freedom for all formerly enslaved people.
Juneteenth – a contraction of June and 19 –marks June 19, 1865, the date Union Gen. Gordon Granger and 2,000 troops rode into Galveston, TX and announced that all enslaved people were free. More than two months after the Confederate surrender, these troops had encountered resistance as they battled their way south and west.
“Emancipation of enslaved Black Americans didn’t mark the end of America’s work to deliver on the promise of equality, just the beginning,” Biden said. He cited the need for policies regarding home ownership and entrepreneurship, equity in school systems, water rights, health care – and voting rights.
The push for Juneteenth took on new urgency after the death of George Floyd in June 2020, which Opal Lee compared to lynching.
“When I think about what our ancestors had to put up with before the Emancipation – before that General Order No. 3 was declared down in Galveston -- the situations aren’t that different.”
Read the full story for FREE here: issuu.com/streetwise_chi/docs/june1319_2022_issuu
A special Juneteenth holiday tree decorated with the tricolor Juneteenth flag showed how readily Chicagoans are grabbing onto the Juneteenth holiday with free celebrations designed to engender community and civic engagement. Newly freed people were similarly enthusiastic at the first Juneteenth celebrations in Texas; they took the rags they had been forced to wear, threw them in the river, and replaced them with new clothes.
Is this our true Independence Day? From July 4, 1776 to the Civil War, the U.S. hardly embodied the words in the Declaration of Independence, that “all men are created equal.” Because slaveholding elites in the South demanded appeasement, Congressional policy was inconsistent and convoluted: examples are the Missouri Compromise of 1820 that maintained an even balance of free states and slave states, and the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, which required Northerners to return escaped people to their masters, an egregious violation of the Northerners’ consciences.
StreetWise participant Cornelius Washington wrote that freedom means “that I can possess the power (as we all have) to seek and to potentially fulfill my purposes in life.”
Vendor A. Allen, however, wrote that freedom without resources was an illusion. Formerly enslaved people wound up sharecropping, which was a new kind of debt slavery.
Read the full story for FREE here: issuu.com/streetwise_chi/docs/june1420_2023_issuu
THE YEARS
What good was freedom if formerly enslaved people had no resources to start new lives?
The Homestead Act and the Emancipation Proclamation went into effect on the same day: Jan. 1, 1863. Any citizen, or someone who intended to become one, could receive 160 acres of public land (which had been taken from the Native Americans) for $14 in filing fees. They were required to build a dwelling, cultivate at least 10 acres and remain at least five years.
MIchelle DUster ON JUneteenth 2024
Only a few Blacks were able to take advantage, however, because they lacked the cash to travel to the Great Plains and to buy livestock and equipment. Black ministers who promoted the idea of Black settlements targeted tradesmen like blacksmiths, stone masons, carpenters and horse handlers, because they had been able to amass capital in the few short years of freedom. As homesteaders, they were able to achieve real freedom, land ownership and political power.
We asked in this story: Would the U.S. be in a more egalitarian place today if more Blacks had been able to build on this free land?
Read the full story for FREE here: issuu.com/streetwise_chi/docs/ june12-18_2024_issuu
On July 4, 1776 the United States became an independent nation, and the Declaration of Independence states "all men are created equal" and have rights to "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness". It lauded the concept of equality while the majority of Black people were enslaved and regarded as property. So, the Declaration of Independence, with all of its lofty language, did not really impact most Black people at that time. It took almost another 90 years before slavery was abolished after the Civil War.
Even though enslaved people in Confederate states were technically freed as a result of the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation, those in Galveston, Texas were not liberated until June 19, 1865, over two years later. As “Juneteenth” emerged as a holiday for formerly enslaved Black people in Texas, it spread through migration from Texas and finally became a national holiday in 2021.
Although many people had never heard of it before that, generations of Black people in certain regions had spent over 150 years enjoying celebrations that include parades, pageants, family gatherings, festivals and more. All Americans should embrace and celebrate Juneteenth as the day when all citizens of the United States technically became free. It still took another 100 years of struggle for Black people to combat legal and institutional race-based segregation and the fight for true equality still persists.
Michelle Duster is an author, public historian, and educator who has worked for over 30 years to highlight positive contributions of African Americans and women, including her paternal greatgrandmother, Ida B. Wells. She has written for Ms. Magazine, TIME, Essence, HuffPost, Teen Vogue, People, Glamour, Daily Beast, and the North Star; and written or contributed to over 20 books.
JUneteenth events
Compiled by Suzanne Hanney
June 14
beverlY/Morgan Park
JUneteenth FaMIlY Fest Ival
110th & Longwood
Sat Noon-7 pm
Fest honors the ancestors, celebrates African and African American cultural heritage, unites diverse community, and connects Chicago residents with resources and services. Expect to find a DJ, African dance and drumming, family sports, bouncy house, face painting, health screenings, food & treats and more. juneteenthfamilyfestival.com
June 14
bronzevIlle JUneteenth
King Drive, 35-37th Street
Sat 11 am-5 pm
Hosted by The Black Star Project, FAM Entertainment Theater Company, The Bud Billiken Parade, and the Office of State Representative Kam Buckner, 5th year event calls on the community to come together to enjoy local vendors, live performances and cultural showcases, food, music, art and history. Whether you stay for the entire event or stop by for just a moment, your presence matters, organizers say. Juneteenth is more than a celebration — it’s a living legacy of resilience, resistance, and rising above. FREE, RSVP encouraged on Eventbrite.
June 17
reFIne collect Ive
JUneteenth FreeDoM Market
The Salt Shed, 1357 N. Elston Ave.
Tues 5-10 pm
Marketplace of 70+ local Black-owned businesses and creators, selling everything from home goods to beauty products, one-of-a-kind fashions and more; DJ sets from Slot A and DJ Ca$h Era and the chance to watch and join the renowned 40+ Double Dutch Club, a Chicago-based non-profit made up of women ages 40+ encouraging movement and community through the fun and nostalgia of Double Dutch. RSVP is free, but please consider a $10 donation to Gray Matter Experience, which empowers the next generation of Black entrepreneurs and changemakers through hands-on business experience, coaching and mentorship.
June 18
JUneteenth WI th the coMMI tteD knI tters
Green Line Performing Arts Center, 329 E. Garfield Blvd.
Wed 11 am-3 pm
Hands-on celebration of Black freedom, resilience, and the ongoing journey toward liberation. More than a crafting circle—this is a space to honor history and build new connections. Makers of all levels in knitting and crochet warmly invited. There’ll be complimentary snacks and drinks, special giveaways, and free yarn and needles for all participants. Tickets are FREE, but registration requested at artsandpubliclife.org/aplevents-calendar/juneteenth-with-thecommitted-knitters.
June 18
eMancIPat Ion ball 2025
Rockwell on the River, 3057 N Rockwell St.
Wed 7 pm
Care Moor Foundation & Moor’s Beer take celebration, freedom and unbridled joy to the next level as third anniversary event celebrates Community, Culture, Creativity, Commerce and Black excellence. $100+ at events.eventnoire. com/e/emancipation-ball-2025chicago-juneteenth-event/tickets
June 19
JUneteenth annUal bbQ
DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center, 740 E. 56th Place Thurs 8 am-8:30 pm
Community BBQ offers food, education, entertainment and vendors. From 1:303:30 p.m., join Mather at DuSable in creating your own relief prints, inspired by the art of Dr. Margaret Burroughs; reservations at tinyurl.com/mather-dusable
June 19
JUneteenth eX travaganza on ellIs 1000 E. 76th St.
Thurs 11 am-6 pm
From vibrant nail art demos and live music to delicious eats, engaging kids’ activities, cultural showcases, and a talent-packed stage—this block party has something for everyone. FREE on Eventbrite.
June 19
JUneteenth FaMIlY aFFaIr
New Mt. Pilgrim MB Church, 4301 W. Washington Blvd.
Thurs 5-7 pm
Outdoor event commemorates this important day in history and creates lasting memories with loved ones via music, food, games, performances and more. FREE on Eventbrite.
June 19
hoMeWooD FlossMoor
JUneteenth
10 am parade on Flossmoor Road
11 am-2 pm block party at Parker Jr. HS Organized by You Matter 2, this celebration of African American culture is expressed through food, music, dance, and arts. The mission is to celebrate and showcase the uniqueness, power, and endurance of African Americans. hfjuneteenthfestival.com
June 19
JUneteenth JUbIlee anD resoUrce FaIr
Harry S Truman College, 1145 W. Wilson Ave.
Thurs 1-5 pm
Voice of the People in Uptown’s day of celebration and empowerment commemorates freedom and equality with a live DJ, raffle & prizes, delicious food, and community partners showcasing their services and work. Discover resources available in the community. FREE, but register on Eventbrite.
June 19
JUneteenth JUke Part Y
3806 W. Chicago Ave.
Thurs 10 pm-midnight
Footwork to some amazing music and enjoy festive dance contests. Age 21+. Tickets $2.91+ on Eventbrite.
June 19
one northsIDe JUneteenth
Pottawattomie Park, 7340 N. Rogers Ave.
Thurs 3-7 pm
The Violence Prevention team’s 5th annual family-friendly event celebrates Black history and spreads the love in its North Side neighborhoods with music, food, dancing and good times. www.onenorthside.org/ events/
June 19
JUneteenth rhY thM & blUes caFé
Anita Dee Rhythm & Blues Cafe, 200 N. Breakwater Access
Thurs 6-10:30 pm
Soulful music and good vibes sailing in Lake Michigan for age 21+. Tickets $90+ on Eventbrite.
June 19
JUneteenth rIver boat toUr
Beaubien Woods Boat Launch, 132nd St., east of Greenwood Ave. Thurs 5-7 pm
Paddle along the Cook County Forest Preserves’ African American Heritage Trail, which includes Underground Railroad sites. FREE, but registration required at experience.nature@cookcountyil.gov or fpdcc.com/event/juneteenth-river-boattour
June 19
JUneteenth FeatUrIng sherYl YoUngblooD
Old Town School of Folk Music, 4544 N. Lincoln Ave. Thurs 7:30 pm
Youngblood is a songwriter/musician/ audio-visual technician and more, who got her start in the church at a very young age. She recorded and sang with Grammywinning Thompson Community Singers of Chicago, and she is a Delmark recording artist and 2015 Chicago Blues Hall of Fame inductee. FREE www.oldtownschool.org/ concerts/2025/06-19-2025-juneteenthcelebration-sheryl-youngblood/
June 19
thank YoU chIcago
JUneteenth Market
Promontory, 5311 S. Lake Park Ave. Thurs 2-7 pm
Celebration of Black business and Black entrepreneurs. FREE on do312.com.
June 19
JUneteenth Part Y
Promontory, 5311 S. Lake Park Ave. Thurs 9 pm-2 am (Fri)
Sounds by Entourage’s Ken Retro featuring Preme, Simmy & 9magicfovever: $15.41+ on Eventbrite.
June 19
theatre anD PerForMIng arts
JUneteenth
Chicago Theatre Works, 1113 W. Belmont Ave. Thurs 4-9:30 pm
Phenomenal guests, live music, spoken word, engaging activities, vendor/craft show and more! Tickets $25+ at Eventbrite.
June 19-20
1865 JUneteenth Fest
Garfield Park Music Court Circle (Madison & Hamlin)
Thurs Noon-8 pm, Fri 3-8 pm
The 1865 coalition includes churches, law enforcement, local businesses, community organizations, educational institutions and elected officials. Culture/Community/ Collaboration/Chicago are the fest’s guiding principles. Kick-off to the fest is at 3 p.m. Wednesday, with a Juneteenth military honors flag raising at the Gold Dome, 100 N. Central Park. FREE. Learn more at eventnoire.com
June 21
evanston JUneteenth ParaDe
Sat 11 am
6th annual event, in partnership with the City of Evanston, celebrates progress that has been made since the first Juneteenth, and recognizes the work that still needs to be done to achieve true equality. Coming together as a community and parading in the streets creates that awareness. www.kemonehendricks.com/juneteenthcelebrations
June 21
Far soU th JUneteenth Fest Ival
821 W. 115th St. 1-6 pm
Far South Community Development Corporation presents live music, food from local Black-owned restaurants, bouncy house, family activities, a resource vendor fair, live business/housing workshops and a small business marketplace! FREE, but register on Eventbrite.
June 21
soU th sIDe YMca JUneteenth
6330 S. Stony Island Ave.
Sat Noon-4 pm
From live performances and cultural activities to fitness fun, local vendors, food, and games for the whole family, this celebration is rooted in what matters most: community, equity and opportunity for all. FREE, but donations welcome for this fundraiser for youth development programs. www.ymcachicago.org/news-events/ south-side-ymca-juneteenth-celebration/
June 22
JUneteenth JaMboree
Roots Handmade Pizza, 744 S. Dearborn St.
Sun 3-9 pm
Live DJs spinning hip-hop, R&B, House, Afrobeats & more; flowing cocktails; games, dancing and dope photo ops. Bring your people and end freedom weekend loud and proud. Dress to express. Tickets $25.96+ on Eventbrite.
Mayan Frieze from private collection to be returned
by Suzanne Hanney
Indiana Jones couldn’t have done it better: a 4-foot Mayan frieze formerly in a private Chicago collection is being returned to the Mexican government with the help of the National Museum of Mexican Art (NMMA) in Pilsen.
Founded in 1982 and opened in 1987, the tiny museum with the broad reach to the nation and the world is going to show how to do repatriation right, officials said. The return of the limestone frieze is “a bit of a dream come true…the culmination of working together with a country about our culture, around our culture” for NMMA founder Carlos Tortolero and chief curator/director of visual arts Cesáreo Moreno.
The 47”x21”x4” (119x53x9.5 cm) limestone frieze of a 500-900 CE ruling class Mayan in headdress (and a matching panel) were taken out of Campeche in the Yucatan peninsula around 1966. They were displayed in the Brooklyn Museum until 1977 and then a museum in Indiana, where the right-hand piece was detached. The late Jeanne and Joseph Sullivan bought the left-hand piece at a gallery in 1988. Last year, however, their family sought the help of NMMA in returning the sculpture to Mexico, thanks to a connection with NMMA board chair/ banker Carlos R. Cardenas.
First, the frieze will undergo conservation work, because nails were improperly added to the back to mount it on a base. Then, it will spend a year on display here so that Mexican, Chicano and Latino communities can appreciate it -- as a gesture of gratitude, said Diego Prieto Hernández, director general of the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) in Mexico, a branch of the Ministry of Culture of the Government of Mexico.
“At the time of the Spanish occupation, civilization already existed in Mexico,” Hernández said. “Students and the public will understand how important is repatriation. It was illegally taken out of the country and was the property of the nation. It’s not to be sold, it’s part of the patrimony that belongs to all Mexicans.”
In February, INAH and NMMA signed a memorandum of understanding, to continue collaborating on projects that promote Mexican patrimony “on both sides of the border,” Hernández said. Cooperation around an Aztec exhibit helped facilitate the memorandum and another gesture of gratitude will be a Mayan exhibit from INAH in Chicago in 2027 or 2028.
Mexican Consul General Reyna Torres Mendivil said the May 13 repatriation announcement was a day of celebration also because the museum’s large outreach will help people learn about their roots and “particularly at this moment, inform everyone about the strength of the country south of the border. Consider it almost an act of protection. The more people learn, the less likely we will see incidents of hate.”
The conversation about repatriation would not have happened 12, 15, or even 20 years ago, Moreno said. In the early part of the 20th century, people with means bought pieces from other countries, whether India, Greece, Egypt, Mexico or Latin America, as a way to brag and decorate their homes.
Mexico has more power to defend its patrimony today, but attitudes have also changed, he said. In the 21st century U.S., spurred by Native American protests around sacred items displayed in a secular and sacrilegious manner, “people are starting to realize those things, usually from indigenous communities, have a deeper meaning to communities from where they were taken than just decoration.”
The person in the 1960s who ransacked archeological treasures that landed at an auction house may have just been trying to feed his family, Moreno said. “The way to stop that is to stop purchasing them. If it had no market value, it would not be touched, it would be left behind.”
Celebrating the repatriation of this 4-foot Mayan frieze at the National Museum of Mexican Art (NMMA) are, from left, Carlos Tortolero, museum founder; Diego Prieto Hernández, director general of the Mexican National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH); Carlos Cardenas, NMMA board chair; Dr. Antonio Sabarit, director of the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City; Jose Ochoa, president and CEO, NMMA; Cesáreo Moreno, chief curator and visual art director for NMMA. (National Museum of Mexican Art photo).
