Constitution Day and Citizenship Day, Constitution Week, 2012

Proclamation 8862 of September 13, 2012

Constitution Day and Citizenship Day,
Constitution Week, 2012

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

Today, we celebrate our heritage as a country bound
together by fidelity to a set of ideas and a system of
governance first laid out in America's Constitution.
The product of fierce debate and enduring compromise,
our Nation's Constitution has guided our progress from
13 to 50 United States that stretch from sea to shining
sea. It has watched over our growth from a fragile
experiment in democracy to a beacon of freedom that
lights the world. It has vested in each of us the power
to appeal to principles that could broaden democracy's
reach.

As we mark this 225th anniversary of the signing of our
Constitution, we also recognize the candidates for
citizenship who will commemorate this day by joining
our American family. For more than two centuries, our
country has drawn enterprising men and women from
around the world--individuals who have sought to build
a life as good as their talents and their hard work
would allow. Generations have crossed land and ocean
because of the belief that, in America, all things are
possible. As a new group of citizens takes an oath to
support and defend our country's oldest principles, we
affirm another truth: that our American journey and our
success would never have been possible without the
hope, the drive, and the irrepressible optimism that
every generation of immigrants has brought to our
shores. Across our country, Americans are working side-
by-side with our Nation's newest citizens to build
strong, welcoming communities that embrace the talents
and contributions of all their members.

This week, we reflect on the basic rights and
responsibilities of citizenship, the founding documents
from which they were drawn, and the extraordinary
legacy of progress they have enabled. Let us forever
uphold the ideals the Framers enshrined in our
Constitution, and let us never cease in our pursuit of
the more perfect Union they imagined so many years ago.

In remembrance of the signing of the Constitution and
in recognition of the Americans who strive to uphold
the duties and responsibilities of citizenship, the
Congress, by joint resolution of February 29, 1952 (36
U.S.C. 106), designated September 17 as ``Constitution
Day and Citizenship Day,'' and by joint resolution of
August 2, 1956 (36 U.S.C. 108), requested that the
President proclaim the week beginning September 17 and
ending September 23 of each year as ``Constitution
Week.''

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the
United States of America, do hereby proclaim September
17, 2012, as Constitution Day and Citizenship Day, and
September 17 through September 23, 2012, as
Constitution Week. I encourage Federal, State, and
local officials, as well as leaders of civic, social,
and educational organizations, to conduct ceremonies
and programs that bring together community members to
reflect on the importance of active citizenship,
recognize the enduring strength of our Constitution,
and reaffirm our commitment to the rights and
obligations of citizenship in this great Nation.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
thirteenth day of September, in the year of our Lord
two thousand twelve, and of the Independence of the
United States of America the two hundred and thirty-
seventh.