Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, announced Thursday he will introduce a bill to make Juneteenth a federal holiday. "One of the most defining days in our nation's history was when President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, finally freeing all slaves in Confederate territory. But slaves in Texas wouldn't learn this life-altering news for two and a half years," Cornyn said in a floor speech. Texas was the first state to make June 19 a state holiday in 1980.
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