Explained: What is Juneteenth, the new federal holiday celebrating end of slavery in US

The holiday will mark the day when Major General Gordon Granger reached Galveston in Texas and issued General Order No. 3 that announced: "All slaves are free."

In what is being hailed as a historic moment, President Joe Biden signed a bill into law declaring June 19 as a federal holiday to mark the end of slavery in the US. “I hope this is the beginning of a change in the way we deal with one another,” Biden said after signing the historic bill. The bill cleared by Congress had been unanimously approved by the Senate. The only opposition it received was from 14 House Republicans — many representing states that were part of the slave-holding Confederacy in the 19th century. The President emphasised the need for the US to catch up with its history and said, "Great nations don’t ignore their most painful moments. Great nations don’t walk away. We come to terms with the mistakes we made. And remembering those moments, we begin to heal and grow stronger.”