Juneteenth Declared Town Of Huntington Holiday

HUNTINGTON, NY — Juneteenth will be observed as a holiday in the Town of Huntington, the town board decided at its May 11 meeting.

The holiday, scheduled for June 19, celebrates the fulfillment of former president Abraham Lincoln's order to end slavery with the Emancipation Proclamation.

"Juneteenth is a holiday to be celebrated by all Americans as it is the moment in history all Americans became free," said Supervisor Chad A. Lupinacci, who sponsored the resolution creating the holiday, via news release. "It’s important to recognize the emancipation of our citizens who were enslaved, reflect upon their sacrifices and contributions, and recognize the significant progress we’ve made as a country in the century and a half since that time."

The same resolution establishing Juneteenth as an officially observed township holiday also established a one-time pandemic compensatory time program for eligible essential employees.

As a form of hazard pay, eligible employees who worked in-person for 75 percent or more of their workdays between March 16th, 2020 and June 8th, 2020 will receive up to five paid days off for time worked based on a formula. The time off must be used by June 2022, according to the town.

"When the entire world was being told to stay home, certain essential Town employees reported to work in-person to take on high-risk tasks necessary to ensure the safety of our residents, employees and facilities at a time of mass uncertainty," Lupinacci said.

Councilman Mark Cuthbertson also called for a moment of silence to honor Dylan Thompson, a Centerport resident and member of the Town of Huntington Citizens Advisory Committee for Persons with Disabilities. Thompson recently died at the age of 27.

Thompson, who had fought Duchenne’s Muscular Dystrophy for years, was appointed to the Committee at the February 2021 town board meeting after his June 2020 request to increase accessibility at town beaches resulted in the deployment of mobile "Mobi" mats to make sand and water more accessible for all beachgoers.