Juneteenth set to become a federal holiday in the USA

[usnuzuloose]

It sure is no joke, I had an appt for tomorrow and it got rescheduled till next week as they are declaring this a new holiday.

 

[ShirikiUtundu]

You sure find yourself in the middle of every DIS argument these days. Must be exhausting.

I see a lot of 'usual suspects' these days. But:

 

[Moliphino]

Kind of sad this was brought to light only recently. Should of been enacted centuries ago and not suppressed for centuries. Never heard of Juneteenth until just the other day. We had Patriot Day enacted almost immediately after 9/11. The timing/motive is questionable and the ball was dropped on Juneteenth. Not suprised given our US History. Recognizing Juneteenth today seems to be saving face vs. doing the right thing overall. Don't get me wrong Juneteenth is definitely a good start and a step in the right direction to more equality changes that need to happen that are also long overdue. Just wished Juneteenth happened way way way sooner like centuries ago rather than centuries later. Sure hope there's a heartfelt apology of the failure of Juneteenth not being recognized and happening sooner. Perhaps the world would of been a better place vs. power, control, and suppression. There's still lots of other equality issues on the table that need to be address and need to happen way way way sooner as well.

I was confused, because Patriots' Day has been a thing in MA for ages, but that's commemorating a completely different thing. I didn't know calling 9/11 "Patriot Day" was a thing (also, it's not a federal holiday).

 

[Karin1984]

All the Karen-ing aside, how will Juneteenth be celebrated in the future? What does Texas at the moment to celebrate this holiday?

First thing that comes to mind is something like concerts. Parades?
What kind of foods, decorations, tv shows,?
And something that came to mind, will it tie in someway Black History Month?

(Disclaimer, this is an honest question. I am not an American, I only know a bit how US people celebrate Fourth of July, Thanksgiving and Christmas. No idea how you celebrate days like MLK or Memorial day)

 

[Lilsia]

All the Karen-ing aside, how will Juneteenth be celebrated in the future? What does Texas at the moment to celebrate this holiday?

First thing that comes to mind is something like concerts. Parades?
What kind of foods, decorations, tv shows,?
And something that came to mind, will it tie in someway Black History Month?

(Disclaimer, this is an honest question. I am not an American, I only know a bit how US people celebrate Fourth of July, Thanksgiving and Christmas. No idea how you celebrate days like MLK or Memorial day)

The city where I live has been celebrating Juneteenth for years. There is a parade and food and just general celebrating.

 

[NYCgrrl]

All the Karen-ing aside, how will Juneteenth be celebrated in the future? What does Texas at the moment to celebrate this holiday?

First thing that comes to mind is something like concerts. Parades?
What kind of foods, decorations, tv shows,?
And something that came to mind, will it tie in someway Black History Month?

(Disclaimer, this is an honest question. I am not an American, I only know a bit how US people celebrate Fourth of July, Thanksgiving and Christmas. No idea how you celebrate days like MLK or Memorial day)

I can’t speak about the future but can of the past. My Nana (paternal stepmother) was the only member of the family who had a long history in the USA. She was a member of a Black progressive church and Juneteenth was celebrated annually.

Members of the church that originated from Texas gave first and secondhand testimonies of the experience and it’s meaning in their lives. They wore special floral bouquets to distinguish them and were available to any attendees with more questions, whether personal or historical. This all took place either on or close to the date as well as a picnic hosted by various church groups.

I doubt that the holiday would be celebrated directly during Black History Month since that begins in February.

 

[MrsPete]

Honestly, I don't know a single black friend that celebrates Kwanzaa.

Nor do I.

I think Juneteenth is more (and will be more) important to our black community than Kwanzaa. I believe it will be celebrated widely, especially now that it is a federal holiday.

Time will tell, but MLK day is not really celebrated here -- by anyone. Consider, too, that July 4 is only weeks away. I wonder how two summer-holidays so close together will affect celebrations.

 

[EMom]

My boss, who is Black, told me it is a big holiday for her family in Detroit. Bigger than the 4th of July.

Our company just made it an official holiday, so I am covering her work so she can celebrate with her family.

What I mean is that we studied it in Texas History class in 7th grade... and probably 4th as well... although most off us knew about it long before then. I can see why it’s celebrated in Texas because it took place here and affected Texans, but I’d think other states would celebrate something different, like the anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation or the end of the Civil War. Obviously, if you have relatives here, you’d know about it.

I’m not objecting to other states recognizing it, just somewhat surprised. I figured they’d have their own state specific date/event of a similar nature.
I realize Texas was the last state to get word, but geographic remoteness tends to have that effect.

 

[jrmasm]

Yes they do, just look at all the people who are offended by my first comment and I'm assuming you are referring to me when you rolled your eyes.

It's unfortunate that a question can't be asked without the usual suspects getting upset or offended. Unfortunate but not surprising.

Can you really not see the difference between:

When is this holiday celebrated?

And

When is this so called holiday celebrated?

 

[EMom]

How is/was it celebrated? Today, everything from parades and business sponsored activities and festivals to events more like family reunions. My mother’s family was invited by the nearby Black families since at least WWI-ish. Her account sounds like most small town events of decades past. Lots and lots of food, games, and just generally visiting and catching up with people. The kids played and the adults talked. Everyone ate. Relatives would travel to take part if they had moved away. But it was a big deal.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I’m not objecting to other states recognizing it, just somewhat surprised. I figured they’d have their own state specific date/event of a similar nature.

TBH I think that's the interesting thing about how you describe it. Sure originating somewhere is something to be very proud of I just noticed how much of the comments have this strange ownership vibe to them. I don't think I would have picked up on it if it hadn't been mentioned multiple times.

FWIW it's been celebrated in my metro (albeit mostly on just one part of it) since 1980 although it transitioned in 2012 to be a tad different. It's celebrated in a specific part of that city with heavy jazz and heavy ethnic roots on purpose in a historic district. The description is as follows "Juneteenth is an annual heritage celebration and platform that celebrates the emancipation of enslaved Africans in America and provides the backdrop to pay tribute to the founders of our community." It's not something I was taught in school but that doesn't surprise me given the suburbia I grew up in. I love my metro but we still have our issues.

We have a day to celebrate our state but it's about the state as a whole (though heavy emphasis on entering as a Free state). Frankly given how my area and within 30 mins of my area pre-date Civil War skirmishes it's unfortunate Juneteeth doesn't take more of a presence here in schooling and community throughout the metro rather than just being less out there, perhaps this Federal holiday addition will help (one can only hope).

 

[GAN]

Juneteenth is perfect. Those of us that have been celebrating Juneteenth for decades, are more than happy to explain

I'm not saying it's not perfect, and now realize people have been celebrating it for 100 or so years. I've never celebrated(as a white person -not that I'm opposed) the day and in fact never knew anything about it until 5-years ago maybe. I can tell you honestly that most white people I know never did either -and when they first heard of it had zero understanding other than it was an unusual name. My point is that if this is to be a "National" inclusive holiday it may help if it's something that will help all people recognize the significance. I agree people who have celebrated should have total say in what it's called, but it's also important that it be something that will be respected for what it is by all people ...not just those who've celebrated it in the past. But maybe that's not what we're going for here.....

 

[stitch'sgirl]

This has absolutely nothing to do with the significance of the holiday. However, to have our senior leadership announce a federal holiday with only a few hours notice is beyond comprehension. I don't see the purpose of the optics of announcing the day before except grandstanding. This could have been done a month in advance or wait and declare the federal holiday for June 2022. I am going to start the coffee pot- I guess now I will be working all night notifying customers, canceling appointments. So frustrated right now!

 

[Buzz Rules]

This has absolutely nothing to do with the significance of the holiday. However, to have our senior leadership announce a federal holiday with only a few hours notice is beyond comprehension. I don't see the purpose of the optics of announcing the day before except grandstanding. This could have been done a month in advance or wait and declare the federal holiday for June 2022. I am going to start the coffee pot- I guess now I will be working all night notifying customers, canceling appointments. So frustrated right now!

To be fair, they have been talking about making it a national holiday for over a year.

 

[stitch'sgirl]

To be fair, they have been talking about making it a national holiday for over a year.

What do you mean "to be fair"? I operate a federal building. I can't close it, just in case the holiday is announced, maybe. We had a 5 star Army General send out an announcement at 2pm about the holiday but could not guide us on whether or not to remain open or close. I have never seen anything like this in my 30 year career for the Army. I am willing to bet most federal building managers are going through the same thing tonight.

 

[ramee]

I'm not saying it's not perfect, and now realize people have been celebrating it for 100 or so years. I've never celebrated(as a white person -not that I'm opposed) the day and in fact never knew anything about it until 5-years ago maybe. I can tell you honestly that most white people I know never did either -and when they first heard of it had zero understanding other than it was an unusual name. My point is that if this is to be a "National" inclusive holiday it may help if it's something that will help all people recognize the significance. I agree people who have celebrated should have total say in what it's called, but it's also important that it be something that will be respected for what it is by all people ...not just those who've celebrated it in the past. But maybe that's not what we're going for here.....

right. Since things are changing for the better, why stop at the name? It’s been known as many things over the years. But we’re not the right audience to have an opinion on these matters.

 

[Christine]

What do you mean "to be fair"? I operate a federal building. I can't close it, just in case the holiday is announced, maybe. We had a 5 star Army General send out an announcement at 2pm about the holiday but could not guide us on whether or not to remain open or close. I have never seen anything like this in my 30 year career for the Army. I am willing to bet most federal building managers are going through the same thing tonight.

Federal employee here. We didn't get notified until about noon today. It's also "timesheet" day and no one could figure out what to do. Our system is not coded to accept a holiday code for today. So we have to record regular hours for tomorrow and then the IT people and HR people will probably have to work night and day to get the system to pay people properly next week. Not complaining, just agreeing that this was all done very quickly and without any sort of preparation to all the agencies.

 

[PollyannaMom]

All the Karen-ing aside, how will Juneteenth be celebrated in the future? What does Texas at the moment to celebrate this holiday?

First thing that comes to mind is something like concerts. Parades?
What kind of foods, decorations, tv shows,?
And something that came to mind, will it tie in someway Black History Month?

(Disclaimer, this is an honest question. I am not an American, I only know a bit how US people celebrate Fourth of July, Thanksgiving and Christmas. No idea how you celebrate days like MLK or Memorial day)

I think you are right about concerts, and it will likely be a day for cookouts as well. (Around here, that means hot dogs, hamburgers, etc. But it varies by region.) From what I knew of Juneteenth before, I think those are some ways it has been celebrated all along, so that will probably just grow with more people now having the day off.)

 

[stitch'sgirl]

Federal employee here. We didn't get notified until about noon today. It's also "timesheet" day and no one could figure out what to do. Our system is not coded to accept a holiday code for today. So we have to record regular hours for tomorrow and then the IT people and HR people will probably have to work night and day to get the system to pay people properly next week. Not complaining, just agreeing that this was all done very quickly and without any sort of preparation to all the agencies.

I feel ya!! Just heard about a huge Coast Guard event scheduled for tomorrow. Now everyone involved will have to be paid double time. Corrected time cards everywhere. And these people who are laughing (looking at you @LilyWDW), it's your federal tax dollars that are being spent on this. Some notice and it could have been rescheduled. This is happening across the country right now. It's purely a waste of resources.

 

[PollyannaMom]

Federal employee here. We didn't get notified until about noon today. It's also "timesheet" day and no one could figure out what to do. Our system is not coded to accept a holiday code for today. So we have to record regular hours for tomorrow and then the IT people and HR people will probably have to work night and day to get the system to pay people properly next week. Not complaining, just agreeing that this was all done very quickly and without any sort of preparation to all the agencies.

Couldn't figure out which kind of response button to hit, because I can see that the short turn-around would be a hassle, but I would have thought it wouldn't be so bad falling on a Saturday.