Education and Sharing Day, USA, 2024

Proclamation 10728 of April 18, 2024

Education and Sharing Day, USA, 2024

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

This Education and Sharing Day, USA, we remember the
life and legacy of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi
Menachem Mendel Schneerson, as the leader of the
Chabad-Lubavitch movement and recommit to our shared
values of honesty, dignity, and equal justice that he
long championed and that have made America strong.

Forced to flee Nazi-occupied Europe during one of
history's darkest moments, the Rebbe found a new home
and purpose in America. In the wake of the Holocaust,
he led hundreds of thousands to deepen their faith. As
a prolific scholar and teacher, his calls for new
schools and community centers inspired people to build
them in all 50 States and across the globe, and they
moved generations to embrace education not only as a
means of self-improvement but as an essential path to a
more just society. Here in America, he also offered
counsel to some of my predecessors as President, always
advocating for our Nation's role as a beacon of hope in
the world.

We honor the Rebbe's birthday every year, but we know
this year is different. Violence and cruelty have
reminded us that hate never goes away--it only hides.
Silence is complicity, and America will not be silent.
As Americans, we reject terrorism and will keep working
unequivocally to combat antisemitism at every turn. My
Administration remains dedicated to Israel's security,
and here at home, we have been implementing America's
first-ever National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism.
We will give hate no safe harbor.

The Rebbe knew that education is fundamental to
cultivating understanding and acceptance. It opens us
up to one another, and it builds not just knowledge but
character, as well as an awareness of something bigger
than ourselves. The Rebbe's beliefs are reflected in
the American creed that every person is created equal
and deserves to be treated equally throughout their
lives, starting with access to a quality education--a
mission my Administration shares.

As we approach the 30th anniversary of the Rebbe's
passing, we honor his work by celebrating our common
faith in our Nation and by working to ensure that every
American has a chance to learn, grow, and thrive--in
the classroom and as caring and courageous people.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of
the United States of America, by virtue of the
authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws
of the United States, do hereby proclaim April 19,
2024, as Education and Sharing Day, USA. I call upon
government officials, educators, volunteers, and all
the people of the United States to observe this day
with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
eighteenth day of April, in the year of our Lord two
thousand twenty-four, and of the Independence of the
United States of America the two hundred and forty-
eighth.