Juneteenth is an annual commemoration of the end of slavery in the United States; it was on June 19, 1865, that Union soldiers, led by Major General Gordon Granger, landed in Galveston, Texas, with news that the war had ended and that the enslaved were now free.
On January 1, 1980, Texas became the first state to designate Juneteenth as a legal state holiday.
On June 17, 2021, the date became a federal holiday becoming one of five date-specific holidays along with New Year’s Day (January 1), Independence Day (July 4), Veterans Day (November 11), and Christmas Day (December 25).
Today we stand in solidarity, honor and celebrate freedom, and acknowledge the continual work needed toward equality of freedom in our country and worldwide.
