I think that slavery is wrong, morally, socially and politically. I desire that it should be no further spread in these United States, and I should not object if it should gradually terminate in the whole Union.
-Abraham Lincoln
Lincoln said these words in 1859 in a speech he gave in Cincinnati, Ohio, before he became President of the United States. He was very clearly against slavery. Politicians of the time shouldn’t have been surprised by the Emancipation Proclamation, but it would take generations for African-Americans to really attain all the civil rights that were deserved. President Lincoln made the declaration of freedom for slaves on January 1, 1963. Any African-American who escaped the Confederate government would become free.
On February 1, 1965, the Thirteenth Amendment was sent to the states for ratification. In the first month, 18 states approved ratification, but 27 states were required. When Lincoln gave his final speech in April, only 20 states had approved the legislation. The president pressed the Southern states to become restored to the Union. He would be assassinated three days later, and Andrew Johnson took over as president. Secretary of State Seward would certify the Amendment on December 18, 1865. Slaves were free, but not full citizens.
Remembering February 1
Richard Robert Wright, Sr. was born in 1855 into slavery. Following emancipation, Wright was able to attend university. He was valedictorian of his 1876 class at Atlanta University. He went on to serve in the U.S. Army, the first African-American to serve an Army paymaster. He was the highest-ranking black officer during the Spanish-American War. He would go on to serve in higher education and was a key figure in encouraging African-American students to get their college degree.
When he was in his 60s, Wright moved to Philadelphia and opened a bank and trust company. He pushed for a day to commemorate the signing of the Thirteenth Amendment. In 1942, the city celebrated freedom by laying a wreath at the Liberty Bell. Wright died in 1947, one year before President Harry S. Truman signed this holiday proclamation into law:
“Whereas the resolution was signed by President Lincoln on February 1, 1865, and thereafter led to the adoption of the Thirteenth Amendment to the constitution; and
Whereas that Amendment is a corner stone in the foundation of our American traditions, and the signing of the resolution is a landmark in the Nation’s effort to fulfill the principles of freedom and justice proclaimed in the first ten amendments to the Constitution; and
Whereas, by a joint resolution approved June 30, 1948 (62 Stat. 1150), the Congress authorized the President to proclaim the first day of February of each year as National Freedom Day in commemoration of the signing of the resolution of February 1, 1865; …
Now, Therefore, I, Harry S. Truman, President of the United States of America, do hereby designate February 1, 1949, and each succeeding February 1, as national Freedom Day; and I call upon the people of the United States to pause on that day in solemn contemplation of the glorious blessings of freedom which we humbly and thankfully enjoy.”
Celebrate National Freedom Day
Even if your town doesn’t hold a festival, you and your family can remember this day. Reflect on the freedoms we have. Read Lincoln’s “Emancipation Proclamation.” Remember the civil rights activists of the 1960s, figures such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X. Kick off Black History Month by watching movies, reading books or listening to music that reminds of African-American heritage. Read more about Richard Robert Wright, Sr. and understand why National Freedom Day is such an important date in our country’s history.