US President Joe Biden has hosted a concert on the South Lawn of the White House to mark June 16, the newest federal holiday, which the President says will “infuse new life into the very fabric of America.” Joined”.
Juneteenth marks the end of slavery in the United States. Biden declared it a federal holiday in 2021.
“For me, making Juneteenth a federal holiday was not just a symbolic gesture,” Biden said Tuesday. It was a statement of fact for this country to recognize the origin of the original sin of slavery, to understand that the war was never fought over it. It was not just about a union, but it was fundamentally about country and freedom.”
Vice President Kamala Harris said Juneteenth is an occasion to “honor black excellence, culture and community.”
“America is a promise, a promise of freedom, freedom and justice,” Harris said. “The story of Juneteenth, as we celebrate it, is a story of our continued fight to make that promise a reality. Not for some, but for all.”
The concert also commemorated Black Music Month and featured artists including Tony Award winner Audra McDonald and singer and talk show host Jennifer Hudson.
In 2021, Biden signed bipartisan legislation making June 16 a federal holiday. The holiday marks the date the last enslaved people in the United States learned they were free, which occurred on June 19, 1865, when Union soldiers told enslaved blacks in Galveston, Texas, the news of his freedom.