A joyous celebration of Black fatherhood as Father’s Day and Juneteenth coincide.
“I wanna show a good figure for Black fathers,” Makhail Pennycooke, a participant in this year’s March of Dads, said. “We’re always in our children’s lives. I wanna show support today.”
What You Need To Know
- March of Dads is an annual demonstration that celebrates, empowers and unites Black and brown fathers
- The first Father's Day was celebrated on June 19, 1910 in Spokane, Washington
- Landmarks across the city and state will glow in red, black and green in honor of the Pan African flag to commemorate Juneteenth
Pennycooke marched alongside his wife Danielle and two-year-old son Aaron at Grand Army Plaza on Sunday.
“I’m always there for any event,” Pennycooke said. “I’m trying to show him the right way to grow up, show him a straight path.”
Organizers of the March of Dads said they want to dispel the stereotype that Black fathers are often absent in their children’s’ lives.
“Five years ago, I had my second child and a woman stopped me and said it was so good to see that I was active,” The Dad Gang founder and CEO Sean Williams said. “And I knew it was meant to be a compliment, but I found it offensive in the sense that I may be a young Black dad that I wouldn’t have been active. I took it was a teaching moment to tell her me and my friends, we do this all the time.”
Williams is a father of three and the founder and CEO of The Dad Gang, an organization that celebrates, empowers and unites Black and brown fathers.
“The idea was to be impactful on a global scale and it’s happening,” Williams said. “And it’s happening and they’re watching me do it. I think by example they’re seeing exactly what I want to teach them. And the example is louder than the words.”
Before the march kicked off Sunday morning, The Dad Gang received a special proclamation from the Brooklyn Borough President, “I, Antonio Reynoso, the President of the Borough of Brooklyn hereby proclaim June 19th, 2022, the Dad Gang Celebration here in New York.”
Fathers and their families marched to the Brooklyn Museum chanting, holding signs and showing the importance of Black father figures.
“My dad was always in my life and he always showed a great example,” Pennycooke said. “Being straightforward. Don’t lie, be who you are.”
Makhail and Danielle hope their son will become a kind, attentive and strong dad one day.
“When he grows up and becomes a father and husband himself, he’ll have that example what to do as well,” Danielle said.
Through Monday night, state and city landmarks will light up in red, black and green in honor of the Pan African flag to commemorate Juneteenth.