Fighting Forward: Coweta NAACP joins City of Hope in celebrating Juneteenth

From Special Reports

Coweta County’s local county chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) hosted their annual Juneteenth celebration and Freedom Fund event on June 19 at City of Hope Cancer Center Atlanta, a comprehensive cancer treatment center in Newnan.

The community celebrated the progress of Black and African Americans and looked ahead toward the future amidst an evening of food, fun, music, art and good company.

The main event featured a panel discussion with Dr. Cynthia Finney, president of the Coweta County NAACP; Jonathan Watkins, president of City of Hope Atlanta; and the Rev. Yolanda Colton, pastor of Mount Olive United Methodist Church. Focused on the event theme, “Fighting Forward,” panelists discussed ways in which the community and its leaders – health care, government, business, spiritual and more – have made progress thus far, and must continue to play an active, engaged role in eliminating racial and socioeconomic barriers to forge paths toward an equitable and accessible future for all.

“We were proud to host this year’s Juneteenth event at City of Hope Atlanta because equality and healthcare go hand in hand,” said Watkins. “It is not only a celebration, but a call to action. We celebrate the resilience and strength of Black and African Americans, and the success we have achieved in the face of adversity. And we carry on that mission into the future to continue the fight for equality and justice in all areas of society.”

Juneteenth commemorates the abolition of slavery and the emancipation of enslaved people across Texas and the former Confederate states on June 19, 1865.