Earlier this week, Governor Jim Justice declared Friday, June 17, a holiday for all public employees in observance of Juneteenth. Marshall will close for the holiday and resume normal operating hours next Monday.

Already scheduled is the Juneteenth Celebration on Thursday from 2:30 to 5 p.m. which will include food and live music from FourChill on the field beside Harless Dining Hall.

University president Brad D. Smith encouraged students and community members to attend the celebration saying in an email; “Please join your Marshall family in commemorating, reflecting and celebrating community and the rich tapestry woven by our Black brothers and sisters at Marshall and across the country. I will also use the occasion to recommit myself to the important work we have ahead of us to address the inequity and racism in the world. I hope you will do the same.”

The holiday was created as a federal holiday last year when President Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law, however, the holiday has been celebrated annually in various capacities since 1865. The holiday commemorates the day Union soldiers arrived to announce emancipation in Galveston, Texas nearly two years after President Lincoln signed the emancipation proclamation – which freed all slaves in confederate states.