Juneteenth is a presidential signature away from becoming a national holiday. The Senate passed it unanimously while only 14 House members (all Republicans) voted against it. There are indications President Biden will sign it as soon as he gets it.
Juneteenth commemorates the day the last enslaved African Americans learned they were free. Confederate soldiers surrendered in April 1865, but word didn’t reach the last enslaved Black people until June 19, when Union soldiers brought the news of freedom to Galveston, Texas. That was also about 2 1/2 years after the Emancipation Proclamation freed slaves in the Southern states.
It’s the first new federal holiday since Martin Luther King Jr. Day was created in 1983.
For more on the history of Juneteenth CLICK HERE
For information on the biggest local celebration CLICK HERE
And for more on the Congressional vote and expected presidential signature CLICK HERE