Virginia governor to propose Juneteenth as state holiday

ALAN SUDERMAN and DENISE LAVOIE

Associated Press

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam announced Tuesday that he's making Juneteenth — a day that commemorates the end of slavery in the U.S. — an official holiday in a state that was once home to the capital of the Confederacy.

Juneteenth, which is also called Emancipation Day and Freedom Day, is celebrated annually on June 19. Texas first made it a state holiday in 1980. The holiday would be a paid day off for all state employees. Northam said he thinks Virginia would be only the second state to do so.

"It's time we elevate this," No...