DENVER (KDVR) — Juneteenth will now be recognized in Colorado as the 11th official state holiday after Gov. Jared Polis signed a new bill Monday.
The legislation was introduced in Colorado after Juneteenth was recognized as a national holiday last year.
Juneteenth recognizes the arrival of Union soldiers in Galveston, Texas, on June 19, 1865, to free the slaves that were still being held there two years after the Emancipation Proclamation. It is the first new holiday for the country since Martin Luther King Jr. Day was recognized in 1983.
Polis joined bill sponsors for a signing Monday. You can watch it live on FOX31 NOW in the player above.