Juneteenth a paid holiday in less than half of states

Despite its designation as a federal holiday, few states recognize Juneteenth, the celebration of the effective end of slavery in the U.S., as a paid holiday.

There’s a chance that you may not have seen this story depending on where you get your news. Ten left-leaning and five right-leaning outlets have reported on the topic, according to a report from NewsNation partner Ground News’ Blindspot. The majority of reports, 71%, came from outlets aligned in the center of the political spectrum.

Juneteenth, celebrated on June 19, marks the day in 1865 when federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, to free enslaved people more than two years after the emancipation proclamation was signed.

Attempts to give Juneteenth the same deference as Memorial Day or July Fourth didn’t begin to gain traction until 2020, when protests sparked a nationwide push to address race.

Those sentiments were fueled by the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis and the deaths of other Black people by police officers.

Last year, Congress and President Joe Biden made Juneteenth a national holiday — the first time the federal government had designated a new national holiday since approving Martin Luther King Jr. Day in 1983.