EASTON, Pa.,— Getting ready to lead a drumline into Centre Square, Antoine Mapp clicks his sticks together and shouts "Let's do what we do!"
The rest of the drum band joins in. They're wearing matching shirts with the band's name: West Powelton Steppers and Drum Squad. Strapped to their bodies appear to be every kind of drum imaginable, using a sophisticated mechanism of custom straps and holders.
It was all part of the inaugural Juneteenth Lehigh Valley parade in Easton. Juneteenth, which became a federal holiday in 2021, marks the anniversary of emancipation, with roots in Texas.
The West Powelton steppers and drumline is a big-name one. They've played at NBA games, NHL games, and even for President Joe Biden and former president Barack Obama. They have collaborated with Disney World, Nickelodeon, and the boy-band NSYNC.
In the middle of the pack are two little boys, 5-year-old Carter Hall, and Antoine's son, 9-year-old Antoine Mapp Jr. They have smaller versions of the drums strapped to them, one of them looks like it was originally a toy, but tuned up to make it sound pro.
Easton, PA: the West Powelton steppers and drum squad gets the crowd fired up at the Juneteenth parade. This is a big-name drumline: they’ve played at Disney World, NFL games, and even for Barack Obama. Once, they collaborated with the boy band NSYNC. @LVNewsdotcom pic.twitter.com/qZsLZbrfz1
— Julian Abraham (@JulianJAbraham) June 19, 2023
In perfect sync, the drumline makes a grand entrance into Centre Square, performing a complicated yet lively mashup of songs. The band started with a song that could have been from a military drum track, and then mashed it into a grand finale of something that sounded like it was inspired by Latin music. For this, some of the snare drummers used the cowbells and A-Go-Go bells mounted on their snares. During the entire sequence, they danced in sync while playing drums, even the little ones.
- Easton held its first Juneteenth parade on Monday
- Juneteenth marks the anniversary of emancipation of African-American slaves, and the holiday has origins in Texas.
- Two pastors who emceed the event say they believe the politicians of the Lehigh Valley are sincere in their support for the event
Ahead of them was the "steppers" portion of their group. It was led by Tatiana Mapp, Antoine's daughter.
Tatiana said Juneteenth is important to her.
"Juneteenth, to me, it's basically like coming out and showing my culture," Tatiana said. "We're a Black community drill team, so it's just like — you don't really see much of those anymore, because everything's starting to die down."
African-American drill teams have their roots in military drumming, and have strong ties to the Southern states. Tatiana said they used to be more popular around Pennsylvania, but you don't see as many these days.
Tatiana said she's proud of everyone in the band, especially the younger kids.
"It takes a lot to be here, because we perform so much and it's just a lot that you got to look out for, being a part of a team and putting everything into your team," she said. " So it's just like everyone put in some type of dedication to this team, to get better. and make us look better."
'Hopefully not just annually'
The rest of the parade featured motorcycles (the Buffalo Soldiers M.C., the largest African-American motorcycle club), dancers, firetrucks, and an all-Black group of Freemasons.
"I pray it's sincere. And for most of them, it is. I can't speak for all them because I do not know all of them. But one of the things that you look at is the track record of some of them really working with community groups, and really, behind the scenes, not for glory, not for fame. But this is something good, and they put resources behind it. So some of the politicians are doing an amazing job for that."Pastor Ray Ricketts, when asked if he believes the politicians speaking at the Easton Juneteenth parade are sincere in their intention.
In the breaths between floats going by, short but inspiring speeches were made from the podium. These came from the mayors of all of the cities in the Lehigh Valley, as well as the two main emcees: Ray Ricketts and Brandon Sardik. Both are pastors at local churches; Ricketts at Allentown's Calvary Temple, and Sardik at Greater Shiloh in Easton.
Both of the pastors/emcees agreed it's wonderful to see a Juneteenth celebration in Easton.
"When I was invited, I jumped at it," Ricketts said. "And I'm so glad I did. Because I was born in the island of Jamaica and to see the Buffalo Soldiers, the Bob Marley stuff coming on, that just took me back, you know, back as a kid at home. But it was good. It was really good to see the diversity of the people in the leadership, you know, within all three cities coming together to celebrate it was really good."
When Ricketts references Bob Marley, he is talking about when the Buffalo Soldiers motorcycle club drove by, they were blasting the famous reggae song of the same name.
'That kind of stuff still goes on'
Both of the emcees said something that every one of the politicians on the podium acknowledged: racism is still alive in the U.S., and it takes more than a Juneteenth parade to fix it.
Ricketts mentioned the well-documented racial pay-gap in the U.S.
"People are working the same job, but their skin color can determine who gets more," he said. "They could be working at the same company, and doing the same job, but one is still getting 21 cents less per hour, than the person who just who just happened to be Caucasian. How in the world? 2023 — and that kind of stuff still goes on?"
In practically the same breath, Ricketts expressed his gratitude to the politicians who came to support Juneteenth, and give speeches. He says he believes for the most part, this effort is sincere.
"I pray it's sincere," Ricketts said. "And for of them, it is. I can't speak for all them because I do not know all of them. But one of the things that you look at is the track record of some of them really working with community groups, and really, behind the scenes, not for glory, not for fame. But a this is something good, and they put resources behind it. So some of the politicians are doing an amazing job for that."
On the same topic, Sardik said he believes the political presence is sincere — and said he hopes to see more of it.
"I mean, I hope it's more than just annually," he said with a laugh. "I hope it's consistent. I hope that every chance they get, a chance to reflect on our history. Because history tells us about the future."
