CONGRESSMAN BOYLE INTRODUCES LEGISLATION TO CREATE A FEDERAL HOLIDAY IN HONOR OF HARRIET TUBMAN

WASHINGTON – Today, Congressman Brendan F. Boyle (PA-02) introduced "The Harriet Tubman Day Act". It is legislation that would create a federal holiday in honor of Harriet Tubman.

"Our federal holidays must be a mirror of the American experience while at the same time reflecting our country's history and diversity", said Congressman Boyle. "Harriet Tubman's brave humanitarian efforts more than a century ago continue to resonate with us today. Ms. Tubman worked day and night to battle the scourge of slavery that had infected our democracy. She saved countless lives and even contributed to several victories in the Civil War. I feel that enacting a federal holiday in her name is a fitting tribute to someone who did so much for so many."

Congressman Boyle announced his legislation on the anniversary of Harriet Tubman's 200th Birthday. If enacted into law, the Harriet Tubman Day Act would create the first federal holiday named after a woman, and the second holiday recognizing an African American.

Tubman was born enslaved in 1822 on Maryland's Eastern Shore. She escaped bondage to Philadelphia in 1849 but returned to rescue her relatives, then more enslaved people, all while battling chronic effects of a traumatic brain injury suffered as a child at the hands of a violent overseer. After the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 allowed bounty hunters to apprehend enslaved people in free states, Tubman led escaped individuals to freedom in Canada.

Known as the "Moses" of the Underground Railroad, she was said to never have lost a "passenger." During the Civil War, she worked for the Union army as a scout and spy.
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