Mayor Muriel Bowser canceled Friday classes for D.C. Public Schools to commemorate Juneteenth, which marks the end of chattel slavery in the United States. 

She called off in-person and virtual instruction for the 50,000-student school system Thursday afternoon, shortly after President Biden signed a bill into law establishing Juneteenth as a federal holiday. 

The day is celebrated on June 19, the date in 1865 when enslaved people in Texas were freed. 

Charter schools, which educate about half of the city’s public school students, will individually decide to hold classes or not. Montgomery County Public Schools also canceled classes for the holiday.

Many other D.C. government services and offices will be closed Friday to commemorate the holiday, which falls on Saturday this year. Closures include include: 

• COVID-19 public testing sites and call centers
• Department of Employment Services call center
• Meal distribution sites at D.C. Public Schools
• The drop-in center at Sasha Bruce Youthwork
• D.C. public libraries, including the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library
• Recreation and aquatic centers operated by the D.C. Department of Parks and Recreation
• Economic Security Administration service centers operated by the Department of Human Services 
• D.C. Health & Wellness Center

Also, the city will suspend parking enforcement and reversible lane operation.

Other offices, including the Department of Motor Vehicles, will remain open, as will playgrounds and spray parks. Trash pick up will not be affected.