Amna Nawaz:

Judy, Juneteenth is either observed or an official state holiday in 49 states and the District of Columbia. The effort to make it a national holiday goes back decades.

But, today, President Biden signed a law making it the first new federal holiday since 1983. Now, Juneteenth commemorates what took place on June 19, 1865, when union soldiers arrived in Galveston, Texas, and announced to enslaved Black people that they were free. That came 2.5 years after the Emancipation Proclamation and two months after the Confederacy surrendered.

We explore the significance of this moment with Khalil Gibran Muhammad. He's a professor of history, race, and public policy at Harvard Kennedy School. He's also the former director of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black culture.

Professor Muhammad, welcome to the "NewsHour." Thanks for being with us.

So, Juneteenth is now added to the list of federal holidays that includes things like New Year's Day and Martin Luther King Day and Memorial Day, Independence Day.

What's the significance of this day joining this list?

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