Juneteenth celebrated across US to mark the end of slavery - DW News.

Parades across the United States have commemorated Juneteenth. The day marks the liberation of the last enslaved people in America. The anniversary has been celebrated for more than 150 years but now it is an official national holiday.

One Parade in Galveston, Texas, marked the day that soldiers of the Union Army informed black slaves that they were free over 150 years ago.

With COVID restrictions being eased across the US, people came together to party, and to remember. This year, for the first time, Juneteenth was an officially recognized federal holiday.

Only on Thursday, US President Joe Biden signed a bill declaring Juneteenth a federal holiday.

After the signing, Biden then honored the 94-year old activist Opal Lee who campaigned for decades to have Juneteenth recognized as a national holiday.

Three days later, with her mission finally accomplished, she was leading a march of hundreds of people through Fort Worth, Texas.

While in New York a public sculpture of George Floyd was unveiled, a year after his death at the hands of a white police officer sparked huge anti-racism protests.

A poignant reminder that the atrocities committed against black people in the past resound in the present. And that a national day of commemoration like Juneteenth is still badly needed.

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