State Rep. Juandalynn Givan, D-Birmingham and Rep. Rick Rehm, R-Abbeville, have prefiled bills that would permanently establish Juneteenth as a state holiday in Alabama.
Rehm’s bill would also provide that state employees must be given the option to observe either Jefferson Davis’ birthday or Juneteenth “in accordance with each state agency’s policy.”
Givan said her previous attempts to get a version of the bill similar to Rehm’s passed had been unsuccessful, and that other Reps. had called it “problematic.”
Efforts to reach Rehm for comment were not immediately successful.
The U.S. declared June 19 a federal holiday in 2021, celebrating the day in 1865 that the last enslaved African Americans were set free in Galveston, Texas. That came two years after President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, and months after Congress passed the 13th Amendment.
Ivey has declared Juneteenth a state holiday each year since 2021, but previous attempts from Givan and others to permanently add the date to the list of state holidays have not passed.
The governor has previously voiced support for making Juneteenth a permanent state holiday, but said she wants the legislature to approve it first, according to Givan.
“The governor has been quite generous,” Givan said.
“She has said time and time again that of course she did not have a problem signing it if we could get it out of both chambers. And so that’s one good thing that has always been in play. And is to her credit.”
Givan added that she “wanted also to credit her for acknowledging it by way of a proclamation.”
“So, we just want to go ahead and go through the formal process of the true acknowledgment of a holiday, established holiday, and move forward. And I think Alabama will be better for it.”
Another bill, brought by Rep. Laura Hall, D-Huntsville, seeks to recognize all federal holidays as state holidays. Juneteenth is the only federal holiday not recognized by the state of Alabama.
As of 2023, more than half of states across the U.S. recognize Juneteenth as a permanent state holiday, according to the Pew Research Center.
Alabama and West Virginia are the only states that have temporarily declared Juneteenth a state holiday. Others observe the holiday but may not count it as a day off.
Givan also referenced President Donald Trump’s executive orders aimed at dissolving diversity, equity and inclusion programs as a reason to ensure the holiday’s protection.
“It will be very interesting to see what the Trump administration does,” she said.
“Because of course, the previous administration actually signed the Juneteenth bill into law. It was a hard-fought bill over a number of years.”
Other Alabama lawmakers seem to share her concerns.
Alabama Congresswoman Terri Sewell recently reintroduced legislation to create a federal holiday honoring civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks, describing it as a counter measure to what she called an attack on diversity and Black history by Trump’s administration.
Sewell wants Dec. 1 to become “Rosa Parks Day” to commemorate her 1955 arrest for violating Montgomery’s segregation laws on buses.
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