President Biden on Thursday signed into law a bill declaring Juneteenth a federal holiday, NBC News reports, officially and nationally recognizing June 19 as the day marking the end of slavery in the U.S.
Of the signing ceremony's many attendees was none other than R&B artist Usher, who last June penned an op-ed for The Washington Post titled "Why it's so important that Juneteenth become a national holiday." Also in attendance was Opal Lee, the 94-year-old activist at the heart of the Juneteenth movement, per NBC News.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Airplane food is reportedly getting much worseCockroaches and E. coli are among the recent problems encountered in the skies
-
What Mike Huckabee means for US-Israel relationsIn the Spotlight Some observers are worried that the conservative evangelical minister could be a destabilizing influence on an already volatile region
-
Crossword: November 19, 2024The Week's daily crossword
-
Biden allows Ukraine to hit deep in RussiaSpeed Read The U.S. gave Ukraine the green light to use ATACMS missiles supplied by Washington, a decision influenced by Russia's escalation of the war with North Korean troops
-
What does the G20 summit say about the new global order?Today's Big Question Donald Trump's election ushers in era of 'transactional' geopolitics that threatens to undermine international consensus
-
Joe Biden's legacy: economically strong, politically disastrousIn Depth The President boosted industry and employment, but 'Bidenomics' proved ineffective to winning the elections
-
Sri Lanka's new Marxist leader wins huge majoritySpeed Read The left-leaning coalition of newly elected Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake won 159 of the legislature's 225 seats
-
Biden arrives in Peru for final summitsSpeed Read President Joe Biden will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping, visit the Amazon rainforest and attend two major international summits
-
'The burden of the tariff would be regressive'Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Should Sonia Sotomayor retire from the Supreme Court?Talking Points Democrats worry about repeating the history of Ruth Bader Ginsburg
-
Senate GOP selects Thune, House GOP keeps JohnsonSpeed Read John Thune will replace Mitch McConnell as Senate majority leader, and Mike Johnson will remain House speaker in Congress
