Tucson Standard

The Pima County Board of Supervisors approved a Juneteenth holiday for county employees Sept. 6.

The board approved the holiday by a vote of 4-1, according to the Pima County website.

The Juneteenth holiday commemorates June 19, 1886, when the last slaves were freed in Galveston, Texas. Eight hours of administrative leave with pay will be granted to Pima County, Arizona, employees for any day in June.

“I am proud that Pima County employees now will have the opportunity to honor and celebrate Juneteenth as a holiday in June every year,” Pima County District 5 Supervisor, Adelita Grijalva, said in a county press release.

Grijalva also said making Juneteenth an official holiday in Pima County is overdue.

“Pima County residents have celebrated Juneteenth for 52 years as a community and the passing of the Juneteenth holiday in Pima County is long overdue," she said.  

“Juneteenth is a movement, not a moment,” she said. “The holiday is a reminder to all of us, that freedom and justice in the United States has often been delayed for Black Americans and that we must always fight for the rights and freedoms of those most vulnerable in our community.”