Juneteenth is the first new federal holiday this year ever since Martin Luther King Jr. Day was created around four decades back in 1983. It marks the anniversary of 19th June 1865, when troops brought the news of freedom to the enslaved Black people in Galveston, Texas.
US President Joe Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act and enacted it as Law in 2021 as a new federal holiday in the U.S. to commemorate the end of enslaved African Americans.
“This is a day of profound weight and profound power, a day in which we remember the moral stain, the terrible toll that slavery took on the country and continues to take,” Biden said.
If you are interested to know whether banks will be open for business or not on Juneteenth then scroll down to know the details!
Juneteenth Holiday
Juneteenth is observed tomorrow i.e. June 19, 2022. As the date happens to be the weekend (Sunday) this year, Monday (June 20, 2022) is declared as the federal holiday.
In Syracuse city in New York State, the Festival was featured on both days viz. yesterday (17th June) and today (18th June) along with Ancestral Celebration scheduled to take place on 24th June.
Are banks open/closed for Business?
Major US banks are closed for business on Monday, June 20th, on the occasion of Juneteenth as per the Federal Reserve website. However, banks’ digital tools and online banking including ATM branches will continue to remain operational.
The majority of the US financial institutions adhere to the Federal Reserve System’s holiday schedule. Bank tellers and other staff members will get an extra holiday this year. Drive-through service is also closed unless it is automated.
Below is the list of major US banks which will be closed.
- Bank of America Corp
- JPMorgan Chase & Co.
- Wells Fargo
- Citigroup
- The Bank of New York Mellon
- Northern Trust
- Capital One
- U.S Bancorp
How about US stock markets?
Trading on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and Nasdaq will be closed on Monday and will resume on 21st June.
Government offices
Monday is a holiday for non-essential federal, state, and city government offices as well. According to the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, if Juneteenth happens to be on Sunday then Monday will be observed as a holiday whereas if it falls on a Saturday then Friday is a Holiday.
The history behind Juneteenth
Federal troops marched towards Galveston, Texas, to take accession of the state on June 19, 1865. Even though the American Civil War concluded, slavery still continued in Texas.
Union General Gordon Granger arrived in Texas and read General Orders No. 3, which stated, “The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free.”
It took two and a half years after the then US President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863. Not all states of America implemented the order to end slavery immediately.
There are other important dates in the history of the US like the Confederate Army’s surrender in the Civil War, and the day Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation which is considered to be the “end” of slavery in the U.S. However, Juneteenth is the day when the majority of the citizens are associated with its conclusion.
Stay tuned for more news!
