Juneteenth Should Be a National Holiday for a Number of Americans: Gallup Poll
Protesters turn on their cell phone lights to honor the victims of police violence as they observe a minute of silence on June 19, 2020 in Richmond, Virginia. Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, when a Union general read orders in Galveston, Texas stating all enslaved people in Texas were free according to federal law. Eze Amos/Getty Images

More Americans are open to the idea of making Juneteenth a national holiday, according to a recent Gallup poll.

Juneteenth is the yearly commemoration of the emancipation of enslaved people in the United States. Even more, Americans who were involved in the survey said the origins of the Juneteenth should be in the school curricula in the U.S., according to a CBS News report.

Thirty-five percent of Americans supported federal recognition of Juneteenth as a national holiday, while one in four said they do not support the idea. Meanwhile, 40 percent said that they were unsure or unfamiliar with Juneteenth.

The survey also found that Black adults were the most supportive group, with 69 percent agreeing Juneteenth should be a federal holiday. This was followed by about 40 percent of Hispanic adults and 27 percent of White adults.

Juneteenth National Holiday

The Senate unanimously passed a bill on Tuesday, making Juneteenth a legal public holiday. The measure is also expected to be approved by the Democratic-driven House of Representatives. However, the exact date is not yet clear.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said that making Juneteenth a federal holiday is a significant step to recognizing the wrongs of the past, according to an NPR report. Schumer added that they must continue to work to ensure equal justice and fulfill the promise of the Emancipation Proclamation.

However, more than one in four Americans say they know "nothing at all" about Juneteenth, according to the survey.

Nearly 70 percent of Black Americans say they have at least some knowledge about the commemoration, while 31 percent of white Americans said the same thing.

Around half of all Americans included in the survey said they believe it should be taught in public schools, while 35 percent were unsure or not familiar.

Juneteenth Celebration

The holiday celebrates the Emancipation Proclamation, which freed the slaves in the South.

The upcoming event has spurred protests, which raised the importance of the commemoration. Companies like Twitter, Nike, and Uber are giving employees paid days off, according to a USA Today report.

Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger announced on June 19, 1865, that former President Abraham Lincoln had freed enslaved people in rebel states two and a half years earlier. Granger then pressed locals to comply with the directive.

Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation became effective on January 1, 1863. The proclamation announced that people who owned slaves were responsible for telling them that they were free.

Some were ignoring the said order until Union troops enforced it. The last Confederate state to have the proclamation imposed was Texas.

Forty-eight states and Washington D.C. recognize Juneteenth as either a state holiday or ceremonial holiday. Hawaii passed the measure on April 27 to recognize the holiday. However, it is not yet clear whether Hawaii's governor signed the bill into law, while South Dakota still has not recognized the holiday.

On Friday, New York will launch the annual Juneteenth three-day summit. In 2019, 5,000 people attended the summit in person. In 2020, around 20,000 attended the event virtually.

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