Juneteenth to Become New Alabama Holiday

By Dale Hines
Blue RAM Media

May 8^th, 2025

MONTGOMERY Ala. A new holiday is coming to Alabama now that the Alabama Senate has passed a bill to officially recognize Juneteenth as a state holiday.

Juneteenth has already been recognized annually for several years in the state after Governor Ivey designated Juneteenth as a state holiday, but it was not “officially” a state holiday but now, once the Governor signs off on the new bill, it will be.

House Bill 165 was previously passed by the Alabama House of Representatives and if signed into law, the bill would add Juneteenth to the list of state holidays, resulting in the closure of all state offices on June 19.

Juneteenth commemorates the day in 1865 when enslaved African Americans in Galveston, Texas, learned of their freedom, more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was issued. It is celebrated as the end of slavery in the United States and is considered the longest-running African American holiday.
In 2021, Juneteenth was declared a federal holiday, highlighting its national importance.

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