What is Juneteenth? The holiday’s history and significance, explained.
Here’s why this once local celebration is significant to U.S. history.
Arizonans don’t have to wait too long after Memorial Day for the next federal holiday.
Juneteenth may be the newest federal holiday, but the celebration has deep historical roots. The day has been commemorated for over 160 years in recognition and celebration of the day enslaved African Americans learned of their emancipation, making it official.
As it is a federal holiday, many will have the day off work and some businesses and services, like the Post Office, banks and stock market, will be closed.
This year, Juneteenth will fall on a Thursday. Here’s everything you need to know about the holiday and its significance.
When is Juneteenth?
Juneteenth is held annually on June 19. The date will land on a Thursday in 2025.
What does Juneteenth celebrate?
On June 19, 1865, enslaved African Americans in the Galveston area of Texas learned of their freedom.
The news came two and half years after President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on Jan. 1, 1863, and more than two months after Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee surrendered at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865, bringing an end to the Civil War.
Enslavers were responsible for telling the enslaved they were free, but some ignored the directive.
This event gave rise to the Juneteenth holiday.
Why is it called Juneteenth?
The name of the holiday combines “June” and “nineteenth.” It is also known as Emancipation Day, Freedom Day, Jubilee Day, Juneteenth Independence Day and Black Independence Day, according to the Congressional Research Service.
Texas was the last Confederate state where the proclamation was announced and the first to recognize the date of June 19 – Juneteenth – statewide. Juneteenth, a day commemorating the official day enslaved people in Galveston, was first observed in 1866. The holiday spread across the country as African Americans migrated away from the South.
When did Arizona start observing Juneteenth?
In 2016, the Arizona Legislature passed a law commemorating Juneteenth with a day of observance. It is not a state holiday. The first state to recognize Juneteenth as a holiday was Texas in 1980, according to the Congressional Research Service. More than half of the states now recognize Juneteenth as a state holiday, according to the Pew Research Center.
When was Juneteenth recognized as a federal holiday?
Congress passed The Juneteenth National Independence Day Act in June 2021, a day after the Senate passed the bill with unanimous consent. Biden signed the bill into law on June 17, just two days before Juneteenth.
The federal government followed the lead of 47 states that already recognized Juneteenth.
What is another name for Juneteenth?
It is also known as Emancipation Day, Freedom Day, Jubilee Day, Juneteenth Independence Day and Black Independence Day, according to the Congressional Research Service.
USA TODAY Reporter Chelsey Cox and Arizona Republic reporter Helen Rummel contributed to this article.
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