Juneteenth (officially Juneteenth National Independence Day and also known as Jubilee Day, Liberation Day, and Emancipation Day) is a federal holiday in the United States celebrating the emancipation of African-Americans who had been enslaved in the United States. Originating in Galveston, Texas, in 1866, it has been celebrated annually on June 19 throughout the United States, and as a federal holiday since 2021, when President Joe Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act. It is commemorated on the anniversary date of the June 19, 1865, announcement of General Order No. 3 by Union Army general Gordon Granger, proclaiming freedom from slavery in Texas.