*Virginia native Pharrell Williams joined his home state’s Gov. Ralph Northam Tuesday to announce a new proposal making Juneteenth — a day that commemorates the end of slavery in the U.S. — an official holiday in a state that was once home to the capital of the Confederacy.
“This is our chance to lead, to truly embrace the importance of Juneteenth and to treat it as a celebration of freedom that Black people truly deserve,” Pharrell said at the podium.
“It’s time we elevate this,” Northam said of the June 19 commemoration. “Not just a celebration by and for some Virginians but one acknowledged and celebrated by all of us.”
The holiday would be a paid day off for all state employees. Northam said he thinks Virginia would be only the second state to do so. Northam also announced all employees of the state executive branch will be given a paid day off this Friday in commemoration of Juneteenth 2020. Williams called on businesses to do the same.
The announcement came less than two weeks after Northam announced he was ordering the removal of a statue of Gen. Robert E. Lee along Richmond’s prominent Monument Avenue. Earlier this year, Northam signed legislation scrapping Lee-Jackson Day, a state holiday named after two Confederate generals.
We Publish News 24/7. Don’t Miss A Story. Click HERE to SUBSCRIBE to Our Newsletter Now!
