Dec. 21 — Berks County will officially recognize Juneteenth, the cultural holiday commemorating the emancipation of enslaved Black people in the United States. At a meeting Thursday, the county commissioners unanimously approved designating June 19 as an employee-paid holiday starting in 2024. The designation aligns with the recent federal and state recognition of the holiday. “To the extent possible we try to match the state since a lot of our departments here interact on a daily basis with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,” Commissioners Chairman Christian Leinbach said. Juneteenth commemorates the freedom of slaves in the former Confederate states following the conclusion of the Civil War. In 1863 President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, declaring the slaves in the Confederate…
