Wake Up the Earth In JP 2018

JAMAICA PLAIN, MA — It's spring and that means the Wake Up The Earth festival is here. It is actually the 40th year for the festival, hosted now by Spontaneous Celebrations, and has its roots in the activism that JP is known for.

The annual festival always happens on the first Saturday in May and is some 10,000 people of all ages are expected to attend to watch music and dance performances, Popular Theatre, and the Youth Stage and then wander around to more than 50 craft, non-profit, and food vendors.

There will be food trucks galore. It's happening all day Saturday so make your way over toward the Stonybrook T stop, follow the happy people and check it out.

Wake Up The Earth began in 1979 when a group of local neighbors and activists banded together to stop the Interstate 95 expansion into Jamaica Plain.

"The festival began as, and still is, a celebration of what can be accomplished when people of all traditions, cultures, ages, and beliefs come together," reads the Spontaneous Celebrations website.

Oh and did we mention the parade? The festival is anchored by a massive parade staring from JP Center and Roxbury with several thousand people marching.