National Night Out Day

National Night Out Day is an annual community-building event held in the United States that promotes police-community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie to make our neighborhoods safer, better places to live.

Did you know that it is celebrated in over 38 million neighborhoods across the United States, bringing together citizens, law enforcement agencies, and community organizations?

History and Origin of National Night Out Day

National Night Out Day was introduced by Matt Peskin, the founder of the National Association of Town Watch (NATW), in 1984. The idea was to promote community-police partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie across the United States. Peskin’s vision was to have a night where neighbors could come together to make their communities safer by fostering relationships and improving public safety awareness. Since its inception, the event has grown significantly, now involving millions of people in tens of thousands of communities across all fifty states.

Here in this video you can see how the city of Lawrence celebrated National Night Out Day in 2022:

When Is National Night Out Day?

National Night Out Day is celebrated annually on the first Tuesday of August. Below is a table listing the dates (and weekdays) for National Night Out Day up to the year 2030.

Interesting Facts about National Night Out Day

How much do you know about National Night Out Day? If you’re new to this day, these interesting facts will help you get started:

• The first National Night Out was held in 1984, involving 2.5 million neighbors across 400 communities in 23 states.
• Although primarily celebrated in the United States, National Night Out Day has inspired similar events in other countries.
• The original concept encouraged people to turn on their porch lights and sit in front of their homes as a symbol of neighborhood watch.
• Many communities now host parades, block parties, cookouts, and safety demonstrations as part of their celebrations.
• The event has received numerous accolades for its contribution to community safety and crime prevention.
• Over 38 million people participate in National Night Out Day events annually.
• National Night Out Day is NOT celebrated on the first Tuesday of August in every region: in Texas and a few other regions, it is celebrated on the first Tuesday of October due to the extreme summer heat.

Before You Go:

We have many more national days lists for you to explore.

• Food-related national days: complete list of national food days, pasta & noodles days, vegan & vegetarian days, ice-cream days, pizza days, coffee days, chocolate days, wine days, alcohol & drinking days.
• Non-food national days: National Days Calendars 2024-2025 (check out the printable calendars in my Etsy shop), National Days for Teachers, and a wide array of special lists such as cat days, dog days, animal days, book days, music days, family & relationships days, national days for women, stationery days and even Harry Potter days.
• Country-specific national days: Australian national days, more coming soon.