What You Need to Know about Juneteenth, Celebration of Black Americans Freedom from Slavery
This Friday is Juneteenth, the United States' oldest known celebration of the end of slavery. Although celebrated by African Americans for generations, it was in 2021 when then President Joe Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law, granting every federal employee a day off annually on June 19 to commemorate the day Black slaves learned they had been freed. The Birmingham Public Library will join City of Birmingham employees in having the holiday off this Friday, June 19. Some BPL locations are hosting programs this week celebrating Juneteenth. From 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. on Wednesday, June 17, patrons at West End Branch will make Juneteenth bracelets using beads. On Thursday, June 18, starting at 10 a.m., Inglenook Branch Library is hosting a Juneteenth program in which patrons can also make Juneteenth bracelets. Come early a supplies are limited. What is Juneteenth? Juneteenth stands for June 19, 1865, the day enslaved people in Galveston,...