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Caribbean L 14 ife, Sept. 18-24, 2020
Juneteenth now an
official state holiday in
New Jersey
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy on Sept. 10 signed a bill which declares
Juneteenth an offi cial holiday in the state of New Jersey. REUTERS/Mike Segar
By Vinette K. Pryce
The fourth-most diverse state in
America distinguished itself recently
joining New York and three others
to officially declare Juneteenth, a
holiday commemorating the June
19, 1865 emancipation of enslaved
African-Americans.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy on
Sept. 10 publicly signed a bill designating
the event and date worthy of
celebration and going forward in his
state would be marked annually on
the third Friday of June.
During a livestream ceremony, the
Democrat signed legislation making
Juneteenth an indelible imprint
with enactment of a state holiday
permitting celebration of the end
of the Civil War and freedom for
African-Americans. His action publicly
declared that New Jersey will
no longer procrastinate on remedying
the injustice of prolonging justice
denied two years after President
Abraham Lincoln officially made the
declaration in 1863.
Unbeknownst to enslaved African-
Americans, the news first announced
in Galveston, Texas was never disseminated
on plantations and other
slave holdings.
“It gives me great pride to celebrate
emancipation and New Jersey’s
great diversity by designating
Juneteenth as an official State holiday,”
Murphy said.
The news cheered by Jerseyites.
”This is big,” Vivian Chew, a state
resident said from her California
home. Temporarily displaced to
the western state, she boasted the
fact that New Jersey was recently
named the fourth-most diverse in
the nation.
“It’s about time,” Tchaka Tonge, a
Teaneck resident added.
The much touted announcement
found Murphy joined by rhythm and
blues singer SZA on an Instagram
session explaining the significance
of the news.
“While more work lies ahead to
undo the oppression that remains,
Juneteenth is an important marker
that reminds us of our mission to
create a society that enables our
Black communities to achieve the
full equality which they deserve,”
he said.
Nevertheless, he expressed optimism
admitting that as a state and
nation, “we are still digging out of
that legacy and my guess is that we
will be for a long time.”
The bill to declare the day a holiday
was approved two months ago by
the New Jersey state legislature.
New Jersey joins New York, Virginia,
Pennsylvania and Texas in making
a declaration to compensate state
employees on the official holiday.
Texas, the state where news of
the liberation of African-Americans
was first announced in Galveston
in 1865, was the first state to make
Juneteenth a holiday in 1980.
Forty-seven other states have
acknowledged the milestone calendar
marker with North and South
Dakota, and Hawaii the only holdouts
to the entire United States.
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