The Senate unanimously passed a bipartisan bill on Tuesday to make Juneteenth a national holiday, celebrating the end of slavery in the U.S. on June 19
WASHINGTON—.
More than 60 senators had signed on to support the bill, enough to overcome a filibuster. The measure still has to pass the House. Also known as Emancipation Day, Black Independence Day or Jubilee Day, Juneteenth marks June 19, 1865 when Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger arrived with federal troops in Galveston, Texas, and issued an order informing the last enslaved people in Texas that they were free. This came more than two months after the end of the Civil War and two and a half years after President Abraham Lincoln had issued the Emancipation Proclamation freeing slaves in the Southern states.
It wasn’t until the ratification of the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution in December 1865 that slavery was abolished throughout the entire country. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer hadn’t publicly announced any plans to bring the Juneteenth bill up for a vote, so it came as a surprise Tuesday afternoon when he sought to fast-track its passage by seeking unanimous consent from all 100 senators.
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