Juneteenth is Friday

Juneteenth National Independence Day is this Friday, June 19. This marks the fifth year the United States will recognize Juneteenth as a federal holiday.

Juneteenth, short for “June Nineteenth,” recognizes the June 19, 1865, emancipation of enslaved people from Galveston, Texas.

Considered the longest-running African American holiday, Juneteenth has gone by many names: Emancipation Day, Freedom Day, Jubilee Day, Juneteenth Independence Day, Black Independence Day and, by statute, Juneteenth National Independence Day.

On that day, federal troops arrived in the city, taking control of the entire state of Texas and ensuring all enslaved people be freed — more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation.

All 50 states and the District of Columbia now recognize Juneteenth as a federal holiday — meaning most federal offices will be closed on Friday. Locally, banks will close as well as some municipal offices. The City of McKenzie, for example, will close its offices June 18–19. McKenzie Memorial Library is also closed Friday, June 19.