BUFFALO, N.Y. — One of the biggest Juneteenth festivals in the country is returning to Buffalo this weekend.
More than 5,000 people are expected to march in the 49th annual Juneteenth parade, and thousands more will flock to the festival that follows.
"We are expecting over 30,000 people to come to the festival, so people come from out of town, from multiple states, sometimes even from other countries, just to come to come to our festival. We are going to be celebrating all things Buffalo, and blackness," organizer Dr. Melissa Neal said.
Added Sterling Lee, co-owner EM Tea Coffee Cup Café: "All walks of life — different businesses, young to old — selling their items, selling food, selling jewelry, selling clothes, selling art. It's way more than just a parade.
This year the parade will begin at 10 a.m. Saturday on Genesese Street. The festival wraps up at 7 p.m. Saturday before the celebration continues on Sunday from noon to 7 p.m.
"Juneteenth, of course, started on Jefferson, and how it has grown to be at Martin Luther King Park, and it's only getting bigger," organizer Starr Funderburg said. "There's so much rich history of Juneteenth Buffalo. We're so excited to be going into our 50th year anniversary next year."
The festival features 150 vendors, including several Black-owned businesses.
The owners of EM Tea Coffee Cup Café said that for many years the Juneteenth Festival spread the word about their café, which opened more than 20 years ago.
Lee said he first helped his mother at Juneteenth Festival when he was 14 years old.
"I learned. I learned quickly about how this is about my community, this is about my culture, so if I want to be involved in this culture and say that I'm part of this culture, I have to know about it," Lee said
Lee said he's encouraged to hear there will be a designated teen area at this year's Juneteenth Festival, as well as a children's area.
"For me it was needed. As I'm growing as a young adult, I'm still trying to figure out who I am. Young kids definitely need to be more involved in it than adults. They are the next generation," Lee said.