Did You Know?
JUNETEENTH is short for June 19th. It commemorates Emancipation Day, when federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas in 1865. By the time the troops arrived to ensure all Black people were freed, two and a half years have already passed since President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation.
This date has been celebrated by Black Americans since the 19th century. Just last June, President Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law, making it a federal holiday for all Americans to commemorate the end of slavery.
Some of us may be wondering why banks and certain government agencies are closed today:
Yesterday was June 19th, but because it falls on a Sunday, the holiday is observed on the following Monday.
For more information: https://sgp.fas.org/crs/misc/R44865.pdf