LYNN — More than 500 people of different ethnicities, sexualities, genders, religions, and abilities filled Red Rock Park on Saturday to enjoy food and entertainment at the Fourth Annual Diversity Matters Festival.

President of the North Shore Juneteenth Association and City Councilor-at-Large Nicole McClain said of all who came and enjoyed themselves, she hopes they leave with a message that people’s differences benefit society.

“When we all bring our differences together, and we are able to enjoy them, those differences, like the different foods that we cook in our traditions, the different dances that we do in our traditions we bring that together, and everybody’s able to experience it and enjoy it as a community,” she said.

The festival was a collaboration between the North Shore Juneteenth Association, Save the Harbor, Save the Bay, the Mass Cultural Council, and other local organizations.

Some of this year’s performers included Michelle La Poetica, who is the Northshore Juneteenth Association’s emcee, Power Skirts Collective, Fae Phoenix, and Cultura Latina Dance Academy.

The festival also included 30 informational and small business vendors and nine food vendors of varying cuisine.

McClain said when the association started the festival in 2021, she wanted to put on an event that would open people’s eyes to cultural awareness, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic and when racial disparities were being recognized nationally.

“Celebrating our differences helps us to really become more aware of what we would lose if we don’t work together,” she added.