A group of Colorado lawmakers introduced a bill Thursday that, if passed, would establish Juneteenth as an official state holiday.

Juneteenth, also called Freedom Day and Emancipation Day, celebrates the emancipation of enslaved people in the United States. The holiday recognizes June 19, when Major General Gordon Granger announced slaves in Texas were free in 1865. This announcement came more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln declared the end of slavery with the Emancipation Proclamation.

“Juneteenth is a celebration of Black lives and our resiliency,” said Dr. Tara Jae, co-founder of Black Pride Colorado. “It is a reminder of our contributions to this country and the changes, although painful and often frustrating, that there is possibility and hope.”

Senate Bill 139 is being led by three Black lawmakers: Aurora Democrat Sen. Janet Buckner, Denver Democrat Sen. James Coleman and Denver Democrat Rep. Leslie Herod.

This effort comes eight months after Juneteenth National Independence Day was made a federal holiday, with President Joe Biden signing the bill in June 2021. All of Colorado’s congressional members voted in support of the federal bill, establishing the nation’s 12th federal holiday and the first since Martin Luther King Jr. Day in 1983.

If the bill passes, Juneteenth would become Colorado’s 11th state holiday, during which most schools and state services are closed. This would be the first change to Colorado’s state holidays since 2020, when lawmakers repealed Columbus Day, replacing it with Frances Xavier Cabrini Day.

“We have been discussing this for years,” Buckner said. “I really think we deserve to have this as a legal holiday. It’s really important to history, it’s really important to people of color, and I think it should be important to all people. We all value freedom.”

Coloradans have celebrated Juneteenth for decades, including through the annual Juneteenth parade and music festival in Denver’s historic Five Points neighborhood. The celebration is one of the largest in the country, attracting around 50,000 attendees each year, according to event organizers. Five Points’ first official Juneteenth celebration was held in 1953.

Just over one year ago, the city of Denver also established Juneteenth as an official city commemorative holiday, joining Denver Day and Indigenous Peoples Day as the city’s only recognized commemorative holidays.

While bill supporters said making Juneteenth a state holiday is important to celebrating Black history, they said it is also only one step in the right direction.

“With the introduction and hopefully a passing of this bill, there will also be acknowledgement of the work that still needs to be done,” Jae said. “This is just one more step in the understanding in our complex national history of a more equitable society.”