The 12th Street East End Black Heritage Festival started as the Black Community Market Place in 1997 at the Rosewood Recreation Center. The founder of Black Community Marketplace, Don Ellerby, had the vision to promote Ujamaa, a Kwanzaa principle meaning Cooperative Economics. The vision was to bring East Austin businesses together and showcase their products and services. This was also an opportunity for entertainers, artists and non-profit organizations, as well. Simone Pollard was one of the vendors interested in expanding on the principle of Ujamaa and joined Don to create the International Heritage Festival. The first International Heritage Festival was held at Kealing Middle School. The festival became a community well-known event and was later moved to Doris Miller Auditorium.
Not really realizing the potential of this festival, I was unaware of how many lives we would impact. I was simply a business owner that wanted to reach out to other business owners. However, I get calls regarding how to start a business, how to set up websites, business precautions, and a whole lot more. I have become a resource in the community, and I have embarked on a lot of new conferences and seminars help others in business and their everyday life.
The now known, 12th Street East End Black Heritage Festival is held every first Saturday, in February, in the Greater Mount Zion Baptist Church parking lot. The focus is to celebrate Black History month by bringing all the cultures together that make up the African American race. These cultures can stretch as far as Africa, Bahamas, Brazil, Columbia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, Panama, South America, Trinidad/Tobago, and be as close as the United States.
No one in our community is Pure African American. Many of us are mixed with some Hispanic, Anglo, and a whole lot more. The only way to appreciate one another, is to appreciate their culture. I want to bring people together in the name of “Love”. We can learn so much from one another if we appreciate one another, love one another, and are open to one another. The Heritage Festival is an opportunity for all of this to happen. We invite anyone that wants to help us spread our vision. Our planning meetings are open to the community, and we welcome new ideas.
We have been honored to feature such great talents as SaulPaul, The Foundation, Gaye Arbuckle, N.O.O.K., B.L.U.E., Passion Dance Troop, Lloyd Ellison, Chad Howard, K.J Hines, No Weapon, Pure Inspiration, Selah Restoration Fellowship, Sisters Coming Together, The Warriors, Voices of Praz, Willing Workers, and many more churches, soloist, bands and dancers. One of our key attractions is our Heritage Award Ceremony. This is the time, when we recognize outstanding individuals and organizations that have gone out of their way to serve our community. From November to January, the citizens of Austin, take the time to nominate who they feel has gone “far and above” to serve others in our community. Many officials come out to be a part of this ceremony, which has included Nelson Linder, Dawnna Dukes, Lloyd Doggett, Art Acevado, Toby Futrell, Mark Strauma, Sam Holt, Sheryl Cole, Sam Biscoe, and Ron Davis.
The 12th Street East End Black Heritage Festival has always been open to embracing new ideas. We have hosted a Health and Wellness Walk, various Art Contest for the youth, Domino Contest, and this year, we will host a Heritage Find, Play Production, and Toy Give-Away. The festival is hosted under the umbrella of the Ujamaa Community Foundation of Austin. They are governed by a board, and are reviewing some new ideas for next year’s calendar.
The Black Heritage Festival is an excellent “family fun” opportunity to learn some history, enjoy some good entertainment, eat some good food, and support local businesses. I want to invite you to come out and share in the fun. If you have any questions regarding the 12th Street East End Black Heritage Festival, please view our website at www.ujamaa-austin.org, or you can contact Simone Pollard at (512) 947-9066.