Garcetti signs proclamation making Juneteenth a paid holiday for LA city employees

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti signed a proclamation Monday making Juneteenth a paid holiday for L.A. city employees.

City Councilmember Curren Price spoke during the signing ceremony.

"We have to demonstrate inclusion, and celebrate our progress, keeping in mind that we still have a long way to go," Price said.

Price was one of three city councilmembers who introduced the motion following the June 2020 demonstrations for racial equality, and against police killings of Black Americans.

The council went on to approve it unanimously.

Juneteenth is the commemoration of the end of slavery on June 19, 1865, specifically in Galveston, Texas -- more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was issued.

"Juneteenth addresses the end of nation's darkest days by acknowledging the historical significance, and it offers a glimpse, a small glimpse, of vindication," Price said. "This will now be a day of remembrance for our city. At this time in our culture, we need to do everything in our power to...educate one another about the things left out of the history books."

Juneteenth was recognized as an official federal holiday in 2021.

City News Service, Inc. contributed to this report