“We are walking in the footsteps of our ancestors;” Dozens walk to honor Juneteenth

YELLOW SPRINGS — Dozens walked 10 miles Sunday to honor the history of the Underground Railroad in Ohio and Juneteenth.

The event was hosted by the Yellow Springs Juneteenth Committee and the Daughters of the Underground.

The walk began at the National Afro-American Musem and Cultural Center in Wilberforce and ended with a celebration in the Village of Yellow Springs.

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Walkers followed a path where enslaved people made their way to freedom across the Ohio River and the location of the Conway Colony marker where enslaved people from Virginia settled in Yellow Springs.

“It is a powerful movement, we are walking in the footsteps of our ancestors. We are walking in power and strength and bringing awareness to our history,” Monica Samuel with Daughters of the Underground said.

John Gudgul, president of The 365 project of Yellow Springs, said to him the event means remembering an important part of history.

“This Juneteenth celebration actually symbolizes an important event, almost forgotten event, in our nation’s history,” Gudgul said.

Juneteenth is a holiday in the United States commemorating the emancipation of enslaved African Americans.

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