“Juneteenth is a day of profound, profound, weight and power to remember the original sin of slavery and the extraordinary capacity to emerge from the most painful moments with a better vision of ourselves,” Biden said. “Miss Opal Lee made it her mission to make history, not erase it. We’re a better nation because you.”

Opal Lee received the nation's highest civilian honor — the Presidential Medal of Freedom — on Friday for her efforts in establishing Juneteenth as a national holiday.