Living history: meeting the 'Mother of Milwaukee's Juneteenth Day'
MILWAUKEE - A Milwaukee woman helped bring the Juneteenth celebration to the city more than 50 years ago; it was a way to honor her history and build up the city.
The woman known as "The Mother of Milwaukee's Juneteenth" sat down with FOX6's Aaron Maybin.
Laid out on Margaret Henningsen’s table, warm memories of Juneteenth Day celebrations in Milwaukee over the decades.
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Looking back through the years
"I’m 77 now. When this idea first came up I was 21," said Margaret Henningsen.
In 1971, Margaret Henningsen had an idea to host a Juneteenth celebration to help revitalize Third Street, which is now Martin Luther King Jr. Drive.
"I often think of Jan Kemp. She was my partner in crime when we did the first one. We didn’t have a marketing budget," said Henningsen.
"It was like, y’all come. We’re going to celebrate Juneteenth. Come on down to third street and people did," said Henningsen.
Juneteenth celebration
Juneteenth commemorates the ending of slavery in the United States.
Henningsen and the Northcott Neighborhood house team have honored that since day 1.
"The 25th anniversary, we added the first freedom ball. We flew the original emancipation proclamation here on a plane," said Henningsen.
These celebrations are powerful.
"I just walk up and down the street grinning, hi, hey, how’s it going? I’m walking a little slower these days, but it still makes me feel good," said Henningsen.
She has been called the mother of Milwaukee’s Juneteenth Day.
Pieces of Juneteenth history
"I love the fact that people recognize the accomplishment of taking this idea and making it happen," said Henningsen.
That idea helped pave the way for future generations.
"We have come so far. We still have a long way to go. We have still have things we have to fight: hatred, racism, discrimination. Those things are easier to fight when you have something to clamp on to and say this is ours," said Henningsen.
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Progress, perseverance, and pride.
Milwaukee's Juneteenth celebration is now one of the largest and longest running Juneteenths in the country.
Henningsen believes Milwaukee was the first northern city to celebrate the holiday.