National Freedom Day
National Freedom Day! This day was founded to celebrate the freedoms we enjoy as U.S. citizens, freedoms that we should never take for granted. Specifically, the holiday commemorates the day in 1865 when President Abraham Lincoln signed what would later become the 13th Amendment. This amendment is so important because it effectively ended slavery in the United States. Freedom is one of the founding principles of the United States of America and this day was envisioned as a way for all citizens to take a moment to appreciate how lucky they are. We should all be thankful for the many freedoms we are afforded as citizens of this great country!
National Freedom Day commemorates the date – February 1, 1865 – when Abraham Lincoln, who was the nation's president at the time, signed a joint resolution that proposed the 13th amendment to the United States Constitution. The amendment was made to outlaw slavery and was ratified on December 18, 1865.
Major Richard Robert Wright Senior, a former slave who founded the National Freedom Day Association, played a crucial role in creating the observance. Major Wright was deemed as a community leader in Philadelphia and was active in education, the media, business and politics. He hoped to see a day that would be dedicated to celebrating freedom for all Americans.
The first commemoration of such a day took place on February 1, 1942, although it was not made into law yet. A tradition of laying a wreath at Liberty Bell also began. On June 30, 1948, President Harry Truman signed a bill to proclaim February 1 as the first official National Freedom Day in the United States.
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