Music blared from four mini stages across Southwest Corridor Park on Saturday for the Wake Up the Earth Festival, where dozens of local businesses pitched tents, drawing in thousands for a day of activities and shopping.
Mayor Michelle Wu delivered a short speech on the Sun Stage, where she welcomed everyone and echoed the festival’s goals of love, unity, and respecting the earth.
“This festival started from a movement to stand up for the community and to get every single person in the community involved, and since then, it’s blossomed into so much more,’’ Wu said in an interview.
The 47th annual Wake Up the Earth Festival was put on by Spontaneous Celebrations, a group whose goal is to create a lively and inclusive community through seasonal events in the Jamaica Plain and Roxbury neighborhoods. Back in 1979, the “Stop the Highway Movement’’ terminated the creation of a highway, and the first Wake Up the Earth Festival took place on that land to show the area’s value.
What was once about “a celebration of the defeat of the highway’’ is now about different communities coming together to celebrate each other and appreciate the earth.
Wu, along with her infant daughter, Mira, made a quick stop at the festival around 4 p.m. She was joined on stage by local representatives who also celebrated the community aspect of the event and the warm and sunny Saturday weather.
“I love seeing all the families out, all the causes and issues and advocacy campaigns that all show up here to organize,’’ Wu said. “It’s amazing to see the founders still involved and so many people who really helped shape Boston to be who we are today, continuing to be in the fight and continuing to provide a platform for the next generation to organize.’’
The day started with two parades to the park, where the six-hour festival began at noon. The variety of performances, booths, and food trucks are meant to represent the diversity in Jamaica Plain.
At each stage, people danced along to whatever genre of music was playing at that time, others swayed in the back or hung out on picnic blankets. Some had interactive performances, such as a Zumba class at the Dance Stage and a drag show at the Pride Stage. This year was the first time the festival had a Pride Stage.
Meredith Davis, 53, who is from Boston and now lives in Santa Cruz, Calif., said she flew back for the event after years of volunteering with Spontaneous Festivals.
Painted in green and dressed as Lady Liberty, Davis volunteered at the “Wall of Hope’’ station, a place where people wrote messages of hope and stuck them to the wall.
“The world being as it is, I feel like people need her inspiration and she needs to get down off the pedestal and do a tour of the world to inspire the people,’’ Davis said.
Booths varied from handmade jewelry, clothing, and art, to political booths drawing attention to local and national issues. Mixed throughout the packed park were lots of family activities such as “junk instruments,’’ face painting, and a potato-sack slide down cardboard.
Sarah Martin, 32, of Roslindale, the owner of Poodle Pack Gear, a small dog and human gear business, said she’s attended the festival for several years and this was her first time as a vendor.
She added the festival had been overwhelmingly positive with lots of people stopping by her tent to just say hello.
“It’s been a great experience just chatting with and meeting everyone, especially their dogs,’’ Martin said. “I just love this neighborhood.’’
Talia Lissauer can be reached at talia.lissauer@globe.com. Follow her on Instgram @_ttphotos.
