Juneteenth will be an official state holiday in Michigan under legislation on its way to Governor Gretchen Whitmer. That’s after the state House adopted the bills Wednesday.
June 19th has been a federal holiday since 2021. Juneteenth is commemorated as the day slavery officially ended in the U.S. in 1865. It falls this year on this coming Monday.
“It encourages citizens to pause on June 19th and reflect on the strong survival instincts of the African American slaves and on the great joy with which the African Americans first celebrated the abolition of slavery,” said Representative Helena Scott (D-Detroit), a bill sponsor.
Juneteenth commemorates the arrival of Union troops in Galveston, Texas on June 19, 1865 who announced the Civil War was over and that enslaved people in the former Confederacy were freed under the Emancipation Proclamation.
In a floor speech, Scott said Juneteenth has been given short shrift in the history books.
“History matters and, unfortunately, there has been a long history of white-washing history, a long history of creating and passing down historical narratives that leave out minority communities,” she said.
The bills were adopted with wide bipartisan support, although four Republicans voted “no.“
Governor Whitmer is expected to sign the legislation, but there’s no word on possible timing. Whitmer signed a proclamation last year declaring a Juneteenth a holiday for state employees.