Sujet : National Freedom Day?
De : benlizro (at) *nospam* ihug.co.nz (Ross Clark)
Groupes : sci.langDate : 01. Feb 2025, 09:34:50
Autres entêtes
Organisation : A noiseless patient Spider
Message-ID : <vnkmbh$q6j$1@dont-email.me>
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While changing the month on a recycled calendar (2014), my eye chanced to light on February 1, marked "National Freedom Day, USA". What? Never heard of it. It's not mentioned on the 2025 calendar which started this whole project.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Freedom_DayWiki says it's a United States "observance"...a careful choice of words?
The event commemorated is clear: Lincoln's signing (1/2/1865) of the joint House and Senate resolution which eventually became the 13th Amendment, abolishing slavery.
It originated with a campaign by Major Richard Robert Wright, Sr. (1855-1947), born into slavery and freed after the Civil War, for a day "when freedom for all Americans is celebrated". It was proclaimed by President Truman in 1948.
So why did I never hear of it? (I lived in the USA for 7 years, and have never been very far from hearing and reading about it.)
Clues in the Wiki article: "The President may issue each year a proclamation designating February 1 as National Freedom Day..."
"may"...or may not. Sounds like it's on a one-year contract.
"On this day, many towns and cities have festivals...Some citizens reflect privately on the freedoms....It is not a federal holiday."
So it just faded from lack of interest? Or was it superseded by Juneteenth?
What experience have other people had of it?