'A momentous occasion to celebrate': Hidalgo seeks to make Juneteenth a holiday at the county level

Juneteenth recently became a federal holiday, with Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo seeking to make it one at the county level.

Juneteenth traces its roots to the arrival of Union General Gordon Granger and a group of federal forces in Galveston.

Granger read the Emancipation Proclamation aloud, essentially declaring Texas' enslaved population free.

"The long-delayed emancipation of slaves in Texas on June 19, 1865 is a momentous occasion to celebrate and observe as Emancipation Day," Hidalgo said in a post to her Twitter account on June 17. "At our next Harris County Commissioners Court meeting, I intend to introduce the designation of Juneteenth as an official county holiday."

The concept of Juneteenth as a holiday received support from a variety of political figures, including President Joe Biden.

“This is a day of profound weight and profound power, a day in which we remember the moral stain, the terrible toll that slavery took on the country and continues to take," Biden said. "I hope this is the beginning of a change in the way we deal with one another.”

Vice President Kamala Harris also added her voice to Biden's in support of the new federal holiday.

“We have come far and we have far to go, but today is a day of celebration," Harris said.

Members of Congress also spoke out in favor of Juneteenth. 

“Our federal holidays are purposely few in number and recognize the most important milestones,” Rep. Carolyn Maloney said. “I cannot think of a more important milestone to commemorate than the end of slavery in the United States.”

The holiday's name is a portmanteau of June 19: "June" plus the "-teenth" from 19th. Biden signed the legislation to make Juneteenth a federal holiday into law on June 17. The bill was authored by U.S. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) and U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Houston).