Seasonal & Holidays
Juneteenth To Be Recognized Friday In Falls Church
The city will join other localities in commemorating Juneteenth after the governor proposed making it a state holiday.
FALLS CHURCH, VA — After Gov. Ralph Northam announced an intention to make Juneteenth a paid state holiday, City of Falls Church government will observe the holiday. Administrative offices will be closed on Friday, June 19. Falls Church employees who staff essential programs and services will work as scheduled.
Juneteenth refers to June 19, 1865, when news of the Emancipation Proclamation made it to the last state. Union soldiers, led by Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger, arrived at Galveston, Texas with news that the war had ended and that the enslaved were now free. This marked the end of slavery in the United States, over two years after the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation.
There are a number of rallies commemorating Juneteenth in DC, and a rally held by the First Baptist Church of Vienna will draw federal, state and local officials.
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Northam said Tuesday he is proposing legislation to make Juneteenth a state holiday. He is giving executive branch employees a paid day off on Friday. Some companies have announced employees will receive the day off.
Earlier this year, the governor also signed a bill to end a state holiday that celebrated Confederate generals — Lee-Jackson Day — and make Election Day a state holiday in its place.
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