Why People Eat Smoked Meats, Potato Salad, and Watermelon to Celebrate Juneteenth
Families at Comanche Crossing say smoked meat and potato salad turn Juneteenth into a shared memory of freedom, survival and community.
- After 60 years, the author's father returned to Washington Park near Comanche Crossing on Lake Mexia, Texas, recounting memories of Juneteenth celebrations. "Visiting Comanche Crossing on Juneteenth felt like freedom," he said.
- Black Texans celebrated June 19, 1865, when Union troops announced freedom in Texas, two-and-a-half years after the Emancipation Proclamation. They established a feast tradition north of where the enslaved first learned of their liberty.
- Culinary historian Jessica Harris wrote in her 2011 book, High on the Hog, that "The backbone of Juneteenth festivities has always been the table." These spreads reflected what scholars call "emancipatory food power" for survival and self-determination.
- The 1981 tragedy at the park rocked the Mexia community when three Black boys, known as the Comanche Three, drowned while being transported by police across Lake Mexia. Attendance at the annual celebration dropped sharply afterward.
- Historian Amilcar Shabazz noted in his book Advancing Democracy that Juneteenth remains central to Black history. Before Black Texans had separate institutions, schools, and churches, they had this holiday as a foundation for community and identity.
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The Conversation
Juneteenth’s real meaning is written on the plates of smoked meats, potato salad and watermelon
A Juneteenth celebration at Franklin Park in Boston's Roxbury neighborhood in 2014. Zack Wittman/The Boston Globe via Getty Images“Visiting Comanche Crossing on Juneteenth felt like freedom,” my father said as we pulled into Booker T. Washington Park, the site near what used to be known as the historic Comanche Crossing on Lake Mexia in Texas. “Listen, Bobby, this place would be full of Black folks cooking, dancing, and playing music. It was a b…
Juneteenth’s actual that means is written at the plates of smoked meats, potato salad and watermelon
“Visiting Comanche Crossing on Juneteenth felt like freedom,” my father mentioned as we pulled into Booker T. Washington Park, the web site close to what was once referred to as the ancient Comanche Crossing on Lake Mexia in Texas. “Listen, Bobby, this place would be full of Black folks cooking, dancing, and playing music. It was a big festival with fireworks and a party.” It were greater than six many years since my father had visited the park …
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