Senate Passes Bill to Make Juneteenth A National Holiday

On Tuesday, the Senate unanimously approved a bill that would make June 19, or Juneteenth, a federal holiday. Though President Abraham Lincoln had signed the Emancipation Proclamation years prior in 1862, June 19, 1865 marks the anniversary of when the final enslaved people in Texas learned of their freedom. The recognition of Juneteenth as a national holiday comes amid a larger national movement examining race and racism in American history. The bill was sponsored by Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and co-sponsored by a bipartisan group of 60 senators; Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) reportedly asked senators to unanimously pass the bill, and no senator objected. The bill received wide praise from lawmakers across the political aisle, including the bill's lead GOP sponsor Sen. John Cornyn (R.-Tx.) and Schumer. This comes after Sen. Ron Johnson (R.-Wis.) clarified that he did not intend to block the bill, though he criticized the “cost and lack of the debate,” and said he thought it was "kind of odd" that "apparently the only way to do that is to give 2 million federal workers a paid day off, cost American taxpayers $600 million.” The bill will now move onto the Democratic-led U.S. House. 

The story received wide coverage from across the political spectrum; outlets often highlighted the bipartisan nature of the bill, the history of Juneteenth and the recent movement surrounding racial justice.