Thousands expected to celebrate at Iowa's African American Festival on Saturday
CLIVE, Iowa– Thousands of people are expect to head to Clive for the annual Iowa's African American Festival.
The event is organized by I'll Make Me a World in Iowa and this is the 27th year it is taking place. Betty Andrews is the Executive Director of I'll Make Me a World in Iowa and she says the day is all about celebrating Black culture with headliners, performances, art, history, a health/wellness demonstration, kids carnival, vendors, and more.
'This is about an entire community that embraces this and everybody has a part in helping lift the culture,' said Andrews, 'That's what makes it great.'
One of the vendors at the celebration is the Fort Des Moines Museum and Education Center. They are located in the southside of Des Moines and they preserve the history of the first Black officers and the first women who trained for the United States Army. This is the 12th year the museum has a stand at this event.
At Celebration Day, they will be sharing more about the Six Triple Eight, which is the largest group of Black servicewomen to serve overseas during World War II. Their story grew in popularity after a Netflix move came out in December, called The Six Triple Eight.
Matthew Harvey, the Board President for the museum, said that the commander and other leaders of the Six Triple Eight trained at Fort Des Moines. Aside from being able to share this history with Iowans, Harvey said he's excited for the whole event.
'I've been personally coming here for over 20 years, bringing my family here, and it's just a wonderful gathering that everyone is welcomed to,' said Harvey.
The celebration kicks off at 10 a.m. and goes through 7 p.m. It's free to attend at the Horizon Events Center in Clive.
The Horizon Events Center is located at 2100 Northwest 100th Street in Clive.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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