National African American History Month, 2001

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Part III

The President

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Proclamation 7404--National African American History Month, 2001

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Title 3--
The President

Proclamation 7404 of February 1, 2001

National African American History Month, 2001

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

In 1915, Carter Godwin Woodson, the father of Black
history, founded the Association for the Study of
African-American Life and History. Each February, the
Association proposes a theme to guide the celebration
of National African American History Month. For this
year, the Association has chosen ``Creating and
Defining the African-American Community: Family,
Church, Politics, and Culture.''

This month in particular, we remember the stories of
those who have helped to build our Nation and advance
the cause of freedom and civil rights. We remember the
bravery of the soldiers of the 54th Massachusetts
Infantry Regiment and the sailors of the USS MASON in
service to our country. We remember those who marched
on Washington, sat at whites-only lunch counters, and
walked rather than use segregated buses. And we
remember those, known only to each of us, who helped to
build our families, places of worship, and communities.

When we examine our Nation's history, we discover these
and countless other stories that inspire us. They are
stories of the triumph of the human spirit, tragic
stories of cruelty rooted in ignorance and bigotry, yet
stories of everyday people rising above their
circumstances and the prejudice of others to build
lives of dignity.

This month, and throughout the year, let us celebrate
and remember these stories, which reflect the history
of African Americans and all Americans. We can all
enjoy the works of writers like Paul Laurence Dunbar,
James Weldon Johnson, Zora Neale Hurston, and Langston
Hughes. In our Nation's schools, our children can learn
to admire Booker T. Washington, Sojourner Truth,
Frederick Douglass, and others. And Americans from all
backgrounds can be ennobled by the examples of Thurgood
Marshall, Roy Wilkins,
Whitney Young, Mary Church Terrell, and other civil
rights leaders.

As we celebrate African American History Month, let us
commit ourselves to raising awareness and appreciation
of African American history. Let us teach our children,
and all Americans, to rise above brutality and bigotry
and to be champions of liberty, human dignity, and
equality. And let us rededicate ourselves to affirming
the promise of our Constitution.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the
United States of America, by virtue of the authority
vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United
States, do hereby proclaim February 2001 as National
African American History Month. I call upon public
officials, educators, librarians, and all of the people
of the United States to observe this month with
appropriate ceremonies, activities, and programs.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
first day of February, in the year of our Lord two
thousand one, and of the Independence of the United
States of America the two hundred and twenty-fifth.

(Presidential Sig.)B