Governor Stein Recognizes Passage of the 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution

In Recognition Of

The Passage Of The 13th Amendment To The United States Constitution

2025

By The Governor Of The State Of North Carolina

A Proclamation

Whereas, the 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified on December 6, 1865, and stated, “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction”; and

Whereas, this landmark amendment marked a turning point in American history, freeing millions of people previously held in bondage across the country; and

Whereas, North Carolina, having seceded from the United States during the Civil War, rejoined the United States after the war’s end and formally ratified the 13th Amendment on December 4, 1865; and

Whereas, the passage and ratification of the 13th Amendment reflected the tireless efforts and sacrifices of millions of Americans – enslaved and free, Black and white – who struggled for generations to end slavery and secure freedom for all; and

Whereas, on September 29, 1865, more than 100 men gathered in Raleigh for the first “Convention of the Freedmen of North Carolina,” and that assembly was the first effort by the state’s African Americans to press for full political rights; and

Whereas, in 1868, North Carolinians elected Black men to the General Assembly for the first time, with 25 winning seats in the state Senate and nearly 100 in the House of Representatives; and

Whereas, this moment in history continues to inspire the ongoing work of building a more just and inclusive society and serves as an opportunity to pay tribute to those who risked everything to make this country a better place for all;

Now, Therefore, I, Josh Stein, Governor of the State of North Carolina, do hereby proclaim December 4, 2025, as “In Recognition Of The Passage Of The 13th Amendment To The United States Constitution” in North Carolina and commend its observance to all citizens.

In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the Great Seal of the State of North Carolina at the Capitol in Raleigh this eighteenth day of November in the year of our Lord two thousand and twenty-fifth and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and fiftieth.