Rondo Days is an annual festival held the 3rd Saturday in July in
Saint Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul (often abbreviated St. Paul) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County, Minnesota, Ramsey County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, ...
, that commemorates the
Rondo neighborhood, an
African-American
African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...
community that was split in two by the construction of
Interstate 94
Interstate 94 (I-94) is an east–west Interstate Highway connecting the Great Lakes and northern Great Plains regions of the United States. Its western terminus is just east of Billings, Montana, at a junction with I-90; its eastern ter ...
in the mid-1960s. The festival has grown since its inception in 1983, by co-founders Floyd G. Smaller and Marvin R. Anderson, to become the largest African American sponsored festival in Minnesota.
History
The construction of Highway 94 through St. Paul in the 1960s destroyed several neighborhoods including Rondo - the backbone of the black community in the Twin Cities. Every June, Rondo days celebrate that community via an annual multi-cultural reunion, started in 1983.
With officials scrapping the 2020 festival caused by the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, the 37th was deferred to 2021.
Festivities
The Rondo Days Grande Parade begins promptly at 10AM, on the 3rd Saturday of July, at St. Claver Church and ending near the MLK Rec Center Park.
There is live music and food, and a drill team contest with participants from around the region.
Other activities have included pony rides, a bike clinic, and petting zoo. Community partners include churches, sports teams, schools and others.
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References
External links
Rondo Days website
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African-American history in Minneapolis–Saint Paul
Culture of Saint Paul, Minnesota
Festivals in Minnesota
Tourist attractions in Saint Paul, Minnesota