Biden Officially Signs Bill Making Juneteenth A National Holiday
June 18, 2021 9:40AM EDT
WASHINGTON, DC – JUNE 17: U.S. President Joe Biden signs the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law in the East Room of the White House on June 17, 2021 in Washington, DC. The Juneteenth holiday marks the end of slavery in the United States and the Juneteenth National Independence Day will become the 12th legal federal holiday — the first new one since Martin Luther King Jr. Day was signed into law in 1983. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
President Biden has signed off on a bill making Juneteenth a national holiday. The bill establishes June 19th as ‘Juneteenth National Independence Day”, commemorating the end of slavery in the U.S. Biden called signing the bill “one of the greatest honors I will have as president”. It’s the first new federal holiday since Martin Luther King Jr. Day was established in 1983. Since June 19th falls on a Saturday this year, most federal employees will get this Friday off. How should Juneteenth be commemorated? What kind of new traditions would you like to see?
