Utah Gov. Spencer Cox on Thursday signed a law to make Juneteenth National Freedom Day a state holiday, a day that commemorates the end of slavery in the U.S.
More states and businesses have made an effort to officially recognize the holiday since the nationwide protests sparked by the death of George Floyd.
Young organizers from Juneteenth Utah and Solidarity for Justice thank those who attended the celebration at Washington Square in Salt Lake City on Friday, June 19, 2020.Utah Gov. Spencer Cox on Thursday signed a law to make Juneteenth National Freedom Day a state holiday, a day commemorating the end of slavery in the U.S.
Also known as June Nineteenth, the holiday marks the day in 1865 when Union troops arrived in Texas more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation to tell remaining enslaved African Americans that the Civil War had ended and that they were free. The holiday has been celebrated by Black Americans since the late-19th century.
Under the law, if the holiday falls on a Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday or Friday it will be celebrated on the preceding Monday. If the holiday falls on a weekend, it will be observed the following Monday, giving people a three-day weekend. In the aftermath of nationwide protests sparked by the death of George Floyd, a Black Minnesota man who was killed by a white police officer in 2020, more states and businesses have made an effort to officially recognize the holiday. President Joe Biden last year signed a law to make Juneteenth a federal holiday.
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