Juneteenth National Freedom Day in Kentucky

Juneteenth (June 19) is the celebration of the freedom of enslaved African Americans. In Kentucky, Representative Reginald Meeks (D-Louisville) led the push to make Juneteenth a holiday in Kentucky.

Though Juneteenth was declared a holiday in Kentucky in March 2005, it was not officially celebrated statewide until it became a federal holiday in 2021. In 2020, Gov. Andy Beshear had signed a proclamation recognizing Juneteenth in Kentucky, stating, "My commitment is that I am going to ask the legislature to recognize it as a state holiday through legislation...." The legislature was to consider making it a state holiday in 2021.

On May 23, 2024, Gov. Andy Beshear signed executive orders making Juneteenth an executive branch holiday and protecting natural hairstyles like braids, locs and twists from discrimination. See Sarah Ladd, "Beshear makes Juneteenth a Kentucky holiday, protects natural hair in state workplaces," Kentucky Lantern, 05/23/2024 (online).

See "A Proclamation on Juneteenth Day of Observance, 2023," a White House webpage.

For more see the Juneteeth video [#217] at "Connections with Renee Shaw," 7/07/2007, at KET (Kentucky Educational Television).