Juneteenth will become an official IU holiday beginning next year, President Pamela Whitten announced Tuesday.
“In the new year, we'll recognize June 19 together, for the first time, as a university community and honor the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the end of enslavement in the United States,” Whitten said on her blog, Written by Whitten.
“Taking time to reflect and engage in the long-standing traditions of Juneteenth is an opportunity to acknowledge our past, fully engage in our present, and look forward with hope and optimism together. It also serves as a reminder of our university's dedication to diversity, equity, and inclusion, as well as our ongoing efforts to make our campuses welcoming, supportive, and safe spaces for everyone.”
Read: Bloomington Organizations Plan To Celebrate Juneteenth
Whitten said the university will honor Juneteenth annually. Because June 19 th falls on a Sunday in 2022, university offices will be closed on Monday June 20. It will be a paid holiday for IU faculty and staff.
“I'm looking forward to starting this new tradition for our Indiana University family with you next year with the hope that we are all inspired by the meaning and significance of Juneteenth,” Whitten said.
The holiday marks June 19, 1865, when federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, to take control of the state, where slavery had remained largely unaffected by the end of the Civil War two months earlier. It came more than 2 ½ years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, which declared all enslaved people free.
Juneteenth has been celebrated by the African-American community for more than 150 years. It became a federal holiday this year.
