Juneteenth now a Federal Holiday
by Rob Macon
Juneteenth, commemorating the emancipation of African-American slaves, is now a federal holiday in the United States. Celebrating African-American culture annually in the U.S. since 1865, it originated in Galveston, Texas. President Joe Biden signs bill declaring June 19th as Juneteeth, marking the end of slavery.
June 7, 1979, President Jimmy Carter decreed that June would be Black Music Month, an annual celebration for nearly 40 years, acknowledged African- American music in the United States. Black music has shaped and influence music around the U.S. for hundreds of years. With an economic impact of multi-billions of dollars. In 2000, President Bill Clinton made Black Music Month, for that year, an official proclamation, for the purpose of “recognizing the importance of African-American Music to global culture and calling on people of the United States to study, reflect on and celebrate African-American music.
During his first term in office in 2009, President Barack Obama renamed Black Music Month to African-American Appreciation Music Month. He noted that African-American music and musicians have helped the country “to dance, to express our faith through song, to march against injustice, and to defend our country’s. enduring promise of freedom and opportunity for all.”
