JULY 2020: All People & Freedom (July 4th)

Celebrate freedom with your fellow Missourians at events held throughout the state this July:

Western Missouri

• Weston’s Fourth of July celebration features a full day of events, including live music and entertainment, a parade and a fireworks show scheduled for 9:45 p.m.
• On July 4, Smithville is also having a fireworks-only show at the Smithville Lake Dam, located at 1610 County Road DD, Smithville, MO 64089. The show will be at the north end of the dam after dark and can be viewed at the marina, by boat, or at Smith’s Fork Park.
• Oak Grove’s firework show will begin at 10 p.m. on July 4. In years past, attendees could view from Bent Oak Park, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the park will be closed this year. Spectators are encouraged to view the show from their own homes.

Central Missouri

• Jefferson City’s annual 4^th of July celebration, Salute to America, is not one to be missed. Featuring the largest fireworks display in Central Missouri, this event fills the Jefferson City downtown festival district with carnival rides, a massive parade, concerts, beer gardens, car shows, and more. For more information or to view a schedule of events, please visit online.
• The City of Columbia’s 67^th Annual Fourth of July celebration, Fourth of July Fire in the Sky, takes place beginning at 9:15 p.m. Presented by Columbia Insurance Group and KOMU 8 and coordinated by Columbia Parks and Rec, this special event will only feature fireworks this year. For more information, to view a schedule of events, or to view tips on having an enjoyable and safe event, please visit online.
• Joplin’s 2020 Independence Day Celebration is occurring on July 4, 2020, at 9:45 p.m. In consideration of social distancing guidelines and mass gathering limits, the City of Joplin and Missouri Southern State University have modified the 2020 Independence Day Celebration to be a fireworks-only show. The fireworks will be set off on the eastern side of the Missouri Southern State University campus. Area residents are welcome to watch the display from their vehicle from designated MSSU parking lots. The stadium and amenities will be closed to the public. The fireworks display will be streamed live on the MSSU website and the Missouri Southern KGCS - TV  Facebook page.

Eastern Missouri

• Fair Saint Louis is an event produced by St. Louisans for St. Louisans and their guests celebrating our nation’s independence each Fourth of July. The Fair typically hosts hundreds of thousands of attendees, but this year, the celebration will be a digital one. Please visit online for a schedule of events.
• Join us in Marshfield on Thursday, July 4, for the 141st Annual Independence Day Parade. The theme for this year's parade is Peace, Love, and the 4^th of July. Fireworks will start around 9:15 p.m., but there will be no entertainment this year. This celebration began in 1879 and remains the oldest, continuous annual celebration west of the Mississippi River. The earliest celebrations were composed largely of local families traveling by foot, horseback, and wagons to a large grove north of town to enjoy the day with friends and neighbors. Although many years have passed, family, friends, and neighbors still travel to Marshfield to enjoy this Independence Day celebration similar to those early celebrations.
• The City of Branson invites you to attend its Independence Day celebration. There will be a number of events happening this year, including several fireworks shows. Events will take place from June 28 until July 11. For more information regarding this special event, or to book your tickets, please visit online.
   

Lucile Bluford Day is celebrated across Missouri on July 1, per a 2016 measure signed into law that encourages residents to "appropriately observe the day in honor of Lucile Bluford, a journalist and civil rights activist who successfully sued to end segregation in the University of Missouri journalism program and whose long and distinguished career at The Kansas City Call contributed to it becoming one of the largest and most important Black newspapers in the nation.”

• A former television reporter, anchor, news director, and documentary producer who founded and heads the Washington, D.C.-based SRB Communications, Sheila Brooks, has authored a book: Lucile H. Bluford and the Kansas City Call: Activist for Social Justice, which recounts Bluford’s fight for admission into the University of Missouri’s graduate journalism program and assess her dual role as a journalist and advocate for the women’s and civil rights movements.