Mayor Signs, Makes Juneteenth A City Holiday

LOS ANGELES — Mayor Eric Garcetti June 6, was joined by Councilmember Curren Price to sign a proclamation making Juneteenth an official City holiday.

Following the proclamation signing, the city councils will issue a supporting resolution to be voted on no later than June 17. The holiday will be recognized as a city holiday on June 19 every year. Should the 19th fall on a Saturday, the holiday will be observed on the preceding Friday, and if it falls on a Sunday, it will be observed on the following Monday. This year, the holiday will be recognized on Monday, June 20. 

Juneteenth is commemorated on the anniversary of June 19, 1865, when Union Army General Gordon Granger issued an order proclaiming freedom for enslaved people in Texas, which was the last state of the Confederacy with legalized slavery. On June 17, 2021, President Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act to designate June 19 as a federal holiday commemorating the emancipation of enslaved African-Americans.