Peoria Branch NAACP

The cultural and community impact of the Juneteenth holiday continues to grow in Peoria each year, evidenced by a month filled with several celebrations and activities.

The Peoria NAACP will again celebrate Juneteenth with the 3rd annual Ernestine Jackson Freedom Day Parade on Saturday, June 13, in Downtown Peoria. The parade will feature 70+ units and be led by Grand Marshall Andre W. Allen, a Peoria City Council member, and family.

Leaders of Peoria’s Black community remember Rev. Jesse Jackson as a trailblazer, an inspirational leader, and a champion of voting rights.

Organizations from throughout the City of Peoria gathered at Freedom and Remembrance Memorial Park Thursday to announce a slate of Juneteenth celebrations.

The Peoria County Election Commission no longer will apply prepaid return postage on its vote-by-mail ballots. NAACP Peoria president Marvin Hightower says that move could present a hardship for some voters.

NAACP Peoria Branch president Marvin Hightower says a viral video of a Bartonville firefighter using a racial slur should prompt some action from village leaders, as village trustee Scott Helms calls for a swift response.

Sybrina Fulton addressed a crowd of hundreds in Peoria on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

The Peoria branch of the NAACP, Peoria Police Department, and Peoria County Sheriff's Office are working together to improve community relations.

Peoria NAACP president Marvin Hightower says not enough has been done to curb police violence against Black men since the murder of George Floyd one year ago.

Of the 43 states recently reported by the Brennan Center for Justice to be facing a wave of new bills aimed at tightening voting rules, Illinois is not…