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The National Freedom Day Association gathered for its 84th Anniversary Luncheon on Saturday, January 31, 2026, at the Hilton Philadelphia City Avenue, 4200 City Avenue, Philadelphia, PA. The annual gathering brings the community together each year to re-dedicate citizens to the idea of freedom as the basis of our democracy, memorializing the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments of the Constitution and the long arc of liberty they set in motion.

National Freedom Day is observed on February First, commemorating the adoption of the 13th Amendment. On February 1, 1865, Congress and President Lincoln agreed to submit the 13th Amendment to the Constitution by two-thirds vote of the States of the Union, the act that wiped from the Constitution every vestige of law favoring human slavery. The Association was founded in 1941 by Major R.R. Wright, Sr. (1855-1947), and the tradition he established continues to call every citizen to remember that this Nation, under God, is dedicated to universal freedom.

The program opened with “Lift Every Voice and Sing” and included “This Is Freedom Day” by Miles Brenton. James G. Spruill, Sr., President, presided, with Nathaniel Holmes as Chaplain, leading the assembled community in song, prayer, and reflection on the meaning of freedom and the responsibility of every generation to renew it.