Citizenship Day and Constitution Week, 1994

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Proclamation 6720 of September 16, 1994

Citizenship Day and Constitution Week, 1994

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

The Constitution of the United States of America is as
forceful and dynamic today as it was on September 17,
1787, the day it was signed by our Nation's Founders.
This hallowed document has endured, and, indeed, has
grown stronger over the 207 years since its adoption.
Today, more than ever, the Constitution stands as a
beacon for all who are dedicated to the principles of
government by and for the people.

The Constitution provides a framework of both constancy
and flexibility in a Nation that is forever striving to
change for the better. But the Constitution is more
than simply the blueprint of our system of government,
more too than the guardian of our most sacred rights.
It is a challenge to every American. For it is only
through the daily actions of each one of us that the
ideals it promises are fulfilled.

The Founders of our Nation pledged their lives, their
fortunes, and their honor. They did not take their
liberty or their new citizenship as Americans for
granted. Neither did the countless courageous men and
women who have sacrificed their lives to defend that
Constitution since then. Nor have the millions of
immigrants throughout our history who have braved
daunting obstacles to reach the welcoming freedom of
our shores. Following in our ancestors' great tradition
of responsibility, Americans retain a solemn duty and a
profound obligation to ensure that the world's boldest
experiment in self-government continues to thrive and
prosper.

Each of us has the right and the responsibility to be
educated and informed, to vote for those who represent
us, and to participate at every level of government.
This week, let us give thanks for the freedoms we
cherish and enjoy. Let us pause in our busy lives to
learn more about and to appreciate our roles as
American citizens. While our Constitution may set forth
rights and liberties, only our citizens can maintain
and guarantee them. Ours has never been an easy task,
but it is one in which we will surely continue to
succeed.

In recognition of the paramount importance of the
Constitution to our Nation, and of all who, by birth or
by naturalization, have attained the status of United
States citizenship, the Congress by joint resolution on
February 29, 1952 (36 U.S.C. section 153), designated
September 17 as Citizenship Day, and by joint
resolution of August 2, 1956 (36 U.S.C. section 159),
requested the President to proclaim the week beginning
September 17 and ending September 23 of each year as
Constitution Week.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, WILLIAM J. CLINTON, President of the
United States of America, do hereby proclaim September
17, 1994, as ``Citizenship Day,'' and the week
beginning September 17 through September 23, 1994, as
``Constitution Week.'' I call upon Federal, State, and
local officials, as well as leaders of civic,
educational, and religious organizations, to conduct
meaningful ceremonies and programs in their schools,
churches, and other community gathering places to
foster a better understanding of the Constitution and
of the rights and duties of citizenship.

I further call upon the officials of the Government to
display the flag of the United States on all Government
buildings on September 17, 1994, in honor of
Citizenship Day.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
sixteenth day of September, in the year of our Lord
nineteen hundred and ninety-four, and of the
Independence of the United States of America the two
hundred and nineteenth.

(Presidential Sig.)>