U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich

From the Office of U.S. Sen Martin Heinrich:

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) released the following statement after the Senate Wednesday unanimously passed bipartisan legislation that he co-sponsored to make Juneteenth a federal holiday.

Juneteenth recognizes the moment, June 19, 1865, when U.S. Army General Gordon Granger announced to formerly enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, that they were free under the 1862 Emancipation Proclamation.

“June 19, 1865, victorious Union soldiers reached the enslaved people in Galveston, Texas to bring the news of freedom. That was more than two years after President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation and more than two months after the end of the Civil War.

“Today, when we celebrate Juneteenth, we celebrate freedom. We also recognize the painful delay in the end of a horrific chapter in our nation’s history. And we recommit to ending the still-continuing delay in delivering on the promise of equal justice and equal liberty for all Americans.”

Sen. Heinrich’s offices will be closed Friday, June 18, 2021 in observance of Juneteenth.