National Bison Day
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National Bison Day is an annual celebration in the United States of the significance of the American bison.[1] A campaign is underway to pass federal legislation officially recognizing the first Saturday of each November as National Bison Day.[2] Although the legislation has so far failed to pass, the Senate has passed a resolution each year since 2013 recognizing the day.[3]
The day is celebrated at sites involved in the conservation of American bison. In addition to organizing, sponsoring and attending local bison-related events and celebrations, the Beards for Bison campaign encouraged supporters to discuss National Bison Day on social media via hashtags and selfies.[4]
Legislation
[edit]For several years, bison supporters have continued a "Vote Bison" campaign seeking to make the American bison the "National Mammal of the United States" and have National Bison Day officially designated as the first Saturday in November each year. The Senate has shown its approval by passing a resolution about the day each year, in recent years led by Senators Mike Enzi (R-WY) and Joe Donnelly (D-IN) and co-sponsored by a bipartisan group of senators.
The House and Senate respectively passed the H.R. 2908 (114th) bill, the National Bison Legacy Act, on April 26 and 28, 2016, officially recognizing the bison as the national mammal, and President Obama signed the National Bison Legacy Act into law on 9 May. The bison was officially designated as the national mammal at a ceremony at Wind Cave National Park in South Dakota at the start of Native American Month, on 1 November 2016.[5]
References
[edit]- ^ Inter-Tribal Buffalo Council; National Bison Association; Wildlife Conservation Society (2015-11-06). "Happy National Bison Day! America Celebrates on Saturday, November 7" (Press release). Washington, D.C.: National Bison Association. Retrieved 2016-01-05.
- ^ "Vote Bison: Elect Our National Mammal!". VoteBison.org. Vote Bison Coalition. 2016. Retrieved 2016-01-05.
- ^ "Senate Passes National Bison Day Resolution". Glenrock Independent. Glenrock, Wyoming. 2015-11-04. Retrieved 2016-01-05.
- ^ "Happy National Bison Day!". National Bison Association. 7 November 2015. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
- ^
- Bowerman, Mary (2016-04-29). "Bison one step closer to becoming 'national mammal'". USA Today.
- Korte, Gregory (2016-05-09). "President Obama signs bill declaring the bison the national mammal". USA Today.
- "H.R.2908 - National Bison Legacy Act". Congress.gov. 2016-05-09.
- Hunsinger, Hannah (2016-11-02). "Buffalo designated national mammal in Wind Cave ceremony". Rapid City Journal.