The McCain Institute and the James W. Foley Legacy Foundation invite you to watch the recording of two events in Washington, D.C., that commemorate the inaugural observance of Hostage & Wrongful Detainee Day:
March 8, 2024, 9 a.m.
In-person panel discussion with returned hostages, detainees, and family members of those held. The focus was on the lived experience of each group and what it means for an American to be unjustly held captive.
March 13, 2024, 3:30 p.m.
In-person panel discussion on Capitol Hill marking the third anniversary of the Levinson Act. Government officials, elected leaders, NGOs, and captives’ family members will participate in the discussion on the national crisis of hostage-taking and the U.S. government’s response.
Congress recently passed legislation officially designating March 9 as Hostage & Wrongful Detainee Day. March 9 is the anniversary of retired FBI Agent Robert Levinson’s disappearance in Iran in 2007. He was declared dead in absentia in 2020. Conflict journalist James Foley was brutally and publicly murdered by ISIS in 2014. His death sparked the government reforms that established the U.S. government hostage enterprise. Servicemember John McCain was held as a prisoner of war for 1,966 days by the Vietcong and refused to be released before other American POWs. Subsequently, as an elected official, he consistently advocated for Americans and others unlawfully or wrongfully held abroad. These events will spotlight the plight of Americans held unjustly captive abroad.
