Taste of Freedom, scheduled at Fresno State on Saturday, is Fresno's first African American living history day. Image from Fresno State event flyer

On Saturday, March 22, the African American Student Social Worker Association will present “Taste of Freedom,” Fresno’s first African American living history day. 

The event will take place at Fresno State on the playfield north of the Aquatic Center. It is a free, one-day educational event that will highlight the contributions of Buffalo Soldiers and African Americans in the Old West. 

Attendees will have the opportunity to engage with living historians portraying historical figures such as the Iron Riders; Buffalo Soldiers; Biddy Mason, one of the first African American female millionaires; U.S. Marshal Bass Reeves and Cathay Williams, one of the first women to enlist in the U.S. Army.

The event will feature demonstrations of period-accurate uniforms, equipment and music, which will help provide insights into what life was like for Buffalo Soldiers and African American cowboys.

Merchandise for the event is available to purchase here.

Additional historical portrayals will feature figures such as President Theodore Roosevelt, cowboy and writer Nate Love, and outlaw Isom Dart.

Exhibits from institutions such as the Sierra Museum and the Biddy Mason Foundation, featuring materials related to Buffalo Soldiers and Mason, will also be on display.

The idea for Fresno’s African American Living History Day originated 25 years ago when Nancy Idlet-Whittle, the Lead Community Volunteer Event Coordinator and historical reenactor, envisioned bringing such an event to Fresno. A collaboration with lecturer Cheryl Whittle at Fresno State helped turn the idea into reality.

Fresno State provided a small grant to support the event’s initial development.

“I just kept that dream. Then, by portraying Harriet Tubman, I met up with Cheryl Whittle at Fresno State, and she said, ‘Let’s make this happen.’ And that’s how it started,” Idlet-Whittle said. 

Idlet-Whittle shared why having an event like this is important for the greater community. 

“I feel that having this event right now is very important because there are so many gaps, and people don’t understand how important each culture is in California or Fresno,” Idlet-Whittle said. “We all are major contributors to what Fresno is today, and learning more about each culture will build cultural bridges of understanding and empowerment.”

Orie Konethongkham, a Volunteer Event Coordinator, said there are already discussions to bring this event back in 2026 and beyond, with an increased emphasis on expanding programming and outreach efforts each year.

Idlet-Whittle and Konethongkham shared what this event means to them. 

“It means a lot for a dream or passion to come true,” Konethongkham said. “This is such a great vision that’s becoming a reality, and this provides an opportunity for the community to be involved because it’s a way for me to give to the community. By continuing this tradition, it will open up a lot of opportunities, open up a lot of education for a community, and just bring people together.”

Idlet-Whittle also said this event coming to life is a “dream come true” and also stressed the importance of the younger generation learning history that isn’t regularly taught in grade school. 

“I go out a lot to areas where kids don’t know their history, and to me, with the way I was taught, is that if you don’t know your history, you really don’t know who you are because your history is your foundation,” Idlet-Whittle said. “So it’s all about the empowerment of not only the black community but children as a whole because they look at the stories of people who had nothing and rose to be heroes.”