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Celebrities who are calling for Juneteenth to be a national holiday, including Taylor Swift and Lupita Nyong'o
Celebrities who are calling for Juneteenth to be a national holiday, including Taylor Swift and Lupita Nyong'o
Anna Medaris MillerJun 20, 2020, 03:51 IST
Charles Sykes/Invision/AP
Juneteenth, held annually on June 19, commemorates the end of slavery in the US and is celebrated by many Black Americans as a day of independence.
Some states and companies already acknowledge it as a holiday.
Now, celebrities including Taylor Swift, Usher, and Lupita Nyong'o are calling for the day to be recognized as a national holiday.
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Taylor Swift tweeted that she's giving all of her employees Juneteenth off from now on, and shared a video advocating for the day to be a national holiday.
Evan Agostini/Invision/AP
Usher wrote an op-ed saying that making the day a national holiday "can remind us of our journey toward freedom, and the work America still has to do."
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Actress Lupita Nyong'o wrote on Instagram that national Juneteenth recognition "would be one more way of acknowledging the intrinsic value of Black people and their history to the wealth and prosperity of the USA."
EDUARDO MUNOZ/Reuters
Actor George Takei wrote on Twitter that "#Juneteenth should be a paid national holiday. Raise your hand if you agree, and pass it along."
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Tom Hanks wrote on Instagram that Juneteenth is "a day to celebrate nationally."