National Freedom Day

February 1st is National Freedom Day in the United States. National Freedom Day is celebrated because on February 1st, 1865 Abraham Lincoln signed the joint resolution from the House and the Senate that eventually became the 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution—the amendment that officially ended slavery in the United States. This year and every year, make it a […]

Women’s History Month

Every year, March is designated Women’s History Month by presidential proclamation. The month is set aside to honor women’s contributions in American history. Did You Know? Women’s History Month started […]

Jewish American Heritage Month

May is Jewish American Heritage Month – On April 20, 2006, President George W. Bush proclaimed that May would be Jewish American Heritage Month. The announcement was the crowning achievement in an effort by the Jewish Museum of Florida and South Florida Jewish community leaders that resulted in resolutions introduced by Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz […]

Older Americans Month

When Older Americans Month was established in 1963, only 17 million living Americans had reached their 65th birthday. About a third of older Americans lived in poverty and there were […]

Mental Health Awareness Month

The month of May has been recognized as Mental Health Awareness Month in the United States since 1949. It was founded by the Mental Health America organization (then known as the National […]

Memorial Day (US)

Memorial Day is an American holiday, observed on the last Monday of May, honoring the men and women who died while serving in the U.S. military. Memorial Day 2023 will occur on Monday, May 29. Originally known as Decoration Day, it originated in the years following the Civil War and became an official federal holiday […]

Canada Day

Canada Day, formerly (until 1982) Dominion Day, the national holiday of Canada. The possibility of a confederation between the colonies of British North America was discussed throughout the mid-1800s. On July 1, 1867, a dominion was formed through the British North America Act as approved by the British Parliament. It consisted of territories then called Upper and Lower Canada and of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. The act divided […]

Independence Day (Fourth of July)

The Fourth of July—also known as Independence Day or July 4th—has been a federal holiday in the United States since 1941, but the tradition of Independence Day celebrations goes back to the 18th century and the American Revolution. On July 2nd, 1776, the Continental Congress voted in favor of independence, and two days later delegates from the 13 colonies adopted […]

Bastille Day

Bastille Day, in France and its overseas départements and territories, holiday marking the anniversary of the fall on July 14, 1789, of the Bastille, in Paris. Originally built as a medieval fortress, the Bastille eventually came to be used as […]

Marcus Garvey Day

Marcus Garvey Day "commemorates Marcus Moziah Garvey, a Jamaican-born Black political activist, publisher, and journalist (to name a few). Garvey was probably the most charismatic Afro-American leader until Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He established a chain of businesses including factories, hotels, restaurants, grocery stores, and laundries and was the founder of the Negro World newspaper, Black […]