Juneteenth is on its way to becoming a Federal Holiday. The U. S. House passed Legislation yesterday that would establish June 19th as Juneteenth National Independence Day, a U. S. Federal holiday commemorating the end of slavery in the United States, sending the Bill to President Biden’s desk for his signature.
The Bill passed the House after the Senate unanimously passed the Legislation Tuesday. The Legislation has gained momentum after the Black Lives Matter protests, sparked by the police killing of George Floyd last year and the Democrats’ takeover of the White House and Congress.
On June 19, 1865, Major General Gordon Granger, announced in Galveston, Texas, the end of slavery in accordance with President Abraham Lincoln’s 1863 Emancipation Proclamation. In 1980, Juneteenth became a Texas State Holiday. In the decades since, every state but South Dakota, came to officially commemorate Juneteenth, but only a handful of states observe it as a paid holiday.
