New film captures untold heroism

BERLIN — The Berlin Equity Action Team has partnered with historical filmmakers, Wide Awake Films, to produce a film capturing the untold heroism of Connecticut’s Black soldiers in the United States: Colored Troops during the American Civil War.

This short film will depict the heroic story of the 29th Regiment Connecticut Volunteers, which included soldiers from Berlin’s early Black community who fought valiantly in the Petersburg Campaign and the capture of Richmond. These Berlin residents contributed to the Union Army’s ultimate victory and went on to spread the message of freedom to enslaved people in Texas on the original Juneteenth in 1865.

The film will premiere at Berlin’s Second Annual

Juneteenth Celebration on Saturday, June 17 at The Berlin-Peck Memorial Library located at 234 Kensington Rd. The day’s programming will also include a keynote speech by Jeffrey Fletcher, owner and curator of the Ruby & Calvin Fletcher African American History Museum in Stratford, as well as presentations from The Connecticut Historical