Ohio takes step toward making Juneteenth a paid state holiday

COLUMBUS – Ohio lawmakers took the first step toward making Juneteenth a paid state holiday.

Ohio Senate approved Senate Bill 334, 32-0, which would make June 19, known as Juneteenth Day, a paid holiday for government employees. If signed into law, Ohio would join Texas and a handful of other states that acknowledge the holiday with paid time off.

“We cannot lose sight of how far racial equity has come and how long the road is ahead for racial justice," said Sen. Hearcel Craig, D-Columbus.

Juneteenth commemorates the end of slavery in the United States.

On June 19, 1865, Union soldiers, led by Major Gen. Gordon Granger, arrived in Galveston, Texas, with news that the war had ended and that enslaved people were free. It took two-and-a-half years after President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation for the news to reach Texas.

Read more: https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/politics/2020/12/02/ohio-takes-step-toward-making-juneteenth-paid-state-holiday/3797895001/