(BALDWIN, N.Y.) - Nassau County Legislator Olena Nicks (D – Uniondale) proudly joined leaders, members, and supporters of CSEA Local 830 on Date at their annual Martin Luther King, Jr. luncheon at the Coral House in Baldwin on Saturday, March 21. During an afternoon featuring live performances and exhibitions honoring the female architects of the civil rights movement, Legislator Nicks was honored by CSEA leadership and New York State Senator Siela A. Bynoe in recognition of her contributions to the community.
The event also served as a springboard for renewed advocacy to have Juneteenth recognized as an official holiday for Nassau County workers. Juneteenth was established as a federal holiday in 2021, marking the anniversary of June 19, 1865, the day Union troops arrived in Galveston, Texas and enforced the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing the last enslaved Americans.
Since then, every U.S. state and every town and city in Nassau County, including Hempstead, North Hempstead, Oyster Bay, Glen Cove, and Long Beach, as well as neighboring Suffolk County, have recognized the day as an official holiday. Nassau County remains the only outlier. Legislator Nicks is continuing the push that Senator Bynoe began as a Legislator to add Juneteenth as an official holiday in Nassau.
“CSEA Local 830 members are the backbone of our County workforce, and I am always proud and grateful to stand with the people who are instrumental in providing essential services that Nassau residents rely on daily,” Legislator Nicks said. “Being recognized during this powerful annual event was especially humbling, and I thank President Kris Kalender and his amazing leadership team for their relentless advocacy for the men and women of labor.”
PHOTO CREDITS – Photos by Chris Portuondodesmith