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We’re standing in solidarity with Hella Creative’s #hellajuneteenth movement and echoing their demands: Juneteenth should be declared a federally recognized holiday. Celebrating Independence Day as a day of freedom when enslaved Black men, women, and children were not legally declared free for another 85 years (with 250,000 not told until two and a half years later) white-washes the cruel legacy of our country’s greatest sin. It’s time we demand Congress step up.

We’re stepping up, too

Starting this year, Juneteenth will be recognized as an official company holiday at Tumblr. This should have been done long ago. If you’d like to see your companies do the same, check out #hellajuneteenth’s incredible resources including templates for requesting your employer recognize Juneteenth like they recognize Independence Day. There’s also a template for an out-of-office message to help spread the word and a poster business owners can print out and hang in the office. For those eager to show their support on social media, #hellajuneteenth provides a number of graphics to share and they suggest you use the #juneteenth tag with the following caption:

We’re reclaiming our time.

For years, the enslaved people gave countless hours of free labor to their owners. Since emancipation, we have been making up for that lost time. So in true solidarity with our ancestors, it’s only right that we declare this to be a day free of labor.

This is important

Sign this petition addressed to Congress. Contact your reps and encourage them to support the initiative. Your voices have led to Minneapolis pledging to disband its police department, the arrests of the police officers responsible for George Floyd’s death, the repeal of Section 50-A in NYC, and the long-overdue demolition of Confederate statues.