Juneteenth is celebrated every 19th of June and is the oldest known holiday honoring the end of slavery in the United States.
June 19, 1865, is the day when more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation, Union soldiers landed in Galveston, Texas, and announced the news of the proclamation to enslaved African Americans there.
That coastal area of Texas was the last to hear that the Civil War had ended two months earlier.
For the first time this year, a growing number of companies are giving their workers a paid day off to observe it.
Weeks after the nationwide protest over the death of George Floyd and racial injustices, companies are now addressing their own issues with racial inequalities and to better support their black employees.
Just last week, Twitter, Nike, and a handful of other companies said they would observe Juneteenth as a paid holiday, and a number of others have followed their lead since then.
“This Friday, June 19, I ask that you take the day to honor the historic pain caused by — and lives lost to — racial inequity and celebrate racial diversity,” Jill Soltau, JCPenney CEO said in a message to employees. “This is an opportunity to continue to learn, connect with each other, and reflect on how we can move forward and achieve permanent and lasting change.”
JCPenney is giving corporate employees paid time off on June 19, and providing additional holiday pay for retail associates scheduled to work that day.
Another retail giant is also making Juneteenth a paid company holiday. Target is providing hourly workers with time and a half pay.
Meanwhile, BestBuy has offered its workers a “paid volunteer day,” which they can take on June 19 or another day this year to engage in “peaceful protests, rallies, and community service.” In a statement, BestBuy said they will make Juneteenth a formal, paid company holiday starting next year.
Ben & Jerry’s, Tumblr, the New York Times, Spotify, Workday, marketing firm Comscore and Kellogg-owned snack company RxBar have also said that they will observe Juneteenth this year.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo also issued an executive order this week recognizing Juneteenth as a holiday for state employees.
Meredith Clark, an assistant professor of media studies at the University of Virginia said in a CNN interview that companies’ acknowledgment of Juneteenth is a good first step, but it can’t be the only step.
“It is a nice symbolic gesture,” Clark said. “I’m never going to frown at a company recognizing a day that is culturally important to so many Americans, really to all of us. But at the same time, I want to see that sort of action matched with a commitment to changing the culture inside these organizations.”