FREEDOM MAS WILL HOLD THE FIRST COSTUME LAUNCH OF 2024 THIS SUNDAY

 What If You Spend the End of Black History Month In Mississauga check out Carnival Parade costumes?

Looks like Mississauga's Black History Month's final significant event for 2024 is set to take place this Sunday at the city’s Small Arms Inspection Building on Lakeshore Road. The Freedom Mas Band is concluding the month with the year's first Carnival costume launch, which they've named the Black History Month Carnival Edition!

The Freedom Mas Band is an integral part of the annual Toronto Caribbean Carnival and is scheduled to participate in the Grand Parade in Toronto on August 3rd. Band leader Johanna Grant shared with reporter Stephen Weir that the Band Launch on Sunday afternoon will unveil their new costume lines inspired by the 2024 theme, "What If."

The free launch event is scheduled to run from 11 am to 6 pm. Alongside the adult and children carnival costume launch, there will be a vendor's market, music, and activities for children. Throughout the day, several special guests are expected to visit the exhibit hall. "We can confirm that Charmaine Williams, MPP Brampton North, will be attending," said Grant. "Councillors from Ward 2 and Ward 9 are confirmed, and I am awaiting confirmation from Mississauga May Bonnie Crombie and Conservative Party leader MP Pierre Poilievre. 

Freedom Mas Band, founded by Johanna Grant, is the brainchild of a Canadian-born individual with Jamaican parents. Grant aimed to provide her children with a taste of Jamaica without the need for a flight. In 2020, her application was approved by the Festival Management Committee to bring a Band to the Toronto Caribbean Carnival representing the Jamaican Diaspora.

The pictures of the Freedom Mas revellers were captured during last year's Grand Parade and show what their costumes looked like in 2023.