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The Tabor Dance Community, a weekly gathering in Southeast Portland, will hold a special celebration for Juneteenth.
“This is different than any other event due to the significance and importance of the date itself, the historical legacy about this day, and ending slavery and for African Americans,” vice president of finance for Tabor Dance Kevin Torres says. “We have a really big community of DJs and musical talent around Portland and we just wanted to commemorate that and spotlight these individuals in this event.”
Tabor Dance first started during COVID when a group of friends decided to start bringing Bluetooth speakers up Mount Tabor and inviting people to dance in a socially distanced manner. Since then, the weekly event now amasses an average of 500 people every week, moving to different park locations, and has officially become a nonprofit organization.
“We are probably the most diverse gathering of people regularly in Portland. Everyone’s kind of just having a good time and bringing love, and it’s infectious,” event organizer and board member Nick Johnson says.
For the Juneteenth event, dancers will jam to the musical stylings of Black DJs Chaz Van Queen, Diff Hue, and Aux Pope. This week’s dance will take place at Laurelhurst Park, starting at 6 pm.
Juneteenth aligning with the weekly dance is a coincidence, but it’s one the event organizers at Tabor Dance fully embrace.
“It’s really fortunate that this year our Wednesday free event that we do throughout the summer happened to fall on a very important holiday,” Johnson says. “This is our bread and butter. We’re about diversity. I think what really drives our community and we’re doing what we’re doing to really point that out.”
More information about the event and Tabor Dance Community can be found at tabordance.org.