Last Updated on June 21, 2021
After an ambulance attended a deadly shooting in Oakland, California, Juneteenth revellers proceeded to twerk on and jump on the vehicle, not stopping their party for anything.
As many black Americans celebrated Juneteenth, the newly-instituted federal holiday to commemorate the end of slavery in Texas, violence erupted across the country in many of these street parties. In Oakland, California, a deadly shooting killed a 22-year-old man and injured four other males between 16 and 27 and one woman in her 20s, close to the Lake Merritt Amphitheatre, where people had been partying all day. Two men ran from the scene and were arrested with guns on them, police say.
“Out of the corner of my eyes I saw a guy with a gun pointing at a car,” said Andrew Simpson, who was jogging close to the lake when the shooting happened. “Everyone started sprinting and screaming,” Simpson told the Bay Area News, with other witnesses claiming many had jumped into the water to escape the violence. In a statement, Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf said that the “joyous” Juneteenth celebrations were “marred by a senseless act of gun violence.”
However, the EMTs did not have an easy time responding to the shooting. As they arrived at the scene, the revellers continued to party, with no regard of the seriousness of the situation that just occurred. Video footage has gone viral on Twitter, showing Juneteenth partiers not only ignoring the Oakland shooting, but taking full advantage of the ambulance as a vehicle for their own fun. Multiple women can be seen twerking on the side of the ambulance, with the camera then panning to one man with a football dancing on top of it. Another woman even clambered up and twerked on the hood of the vehicle itself.
Shooting at Oakland CA Juneteenth celebrations last night, leave 1 dead and 5 injured. This is how people reacted when the EMTs arrived. pic.twitter.com/AcFPciJuzq
— Anthea (@Anthea06274890) June 21, 2021
In New Jersey, local police warned people to avoid the area of Juneteenth celebrations, with store employees remaining trapped in their places of work as shopfronts were targeted for random acts of destruction, and police advising that “numerous fights” including attacks on officers had broken out in the streets. Video footage recorded at the scene of the riotous Juneteenth celebration shows a pair of black women ruthlessly beating a white female attendee, as countless members of the crowd surrounded the group cheering on the violence and, at times, throwing their own jabs at the victim of the attack.
Juneteenth party turns violent in Long Branch, NJ (Pier Village)
(Reposting since the original video was taken down) pic.twitter.com/pB78O9mFCm
— Jewish Deplorable (@TrumpJew2) June 20, 2021
Many official Juneteenth “celebrations” went ahead this weekend, including in Evanston, Illinois. The town, part of the Chicago metro area, has however cancelled their official 4th of July events, citing public health concerns due to the coronavirus pandemic. An official LGBT “drive by parade” has also been offered by the city during the month of June, with no public health issues reported.
