Jewish American Heritage Month, 2009

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Part V

The President

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Proclamation 8379--Jewish American Heritage Month, 2009

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Title 3--
The President

Proclamation 8379 of May 12, 2009

Jewish American Heritage Month, 2009

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

The Jewish American tradition exemplifies the strength
of the American immigrant tradition. Since Jews arrived
in New Amsterdam in 1654, Jewish Americans have
maintained a unique identity just as they have enmeshed
themselves in the fabric of the United States. This
month we celebrate this inspiring and unifying
narrative.

Jewish Americans across the United States practice the
faith and celebrate the culture of their ancestors.
Across the Nation every day, individuals emulate their
forebears by seeking to perform mitzvot, the hundreds
of commandments set forth in the Torah. The term
``mitzvah'' has come to mean ``good deed,'' and many
Jews have adopted these practices to serve their
communities. Other mitzvot include observing holidays,
such as Passover, which marks the exodus from Egypt;
and Yom Kippur, a time to contemplate and seek
forgiveness for the sins of the past year; and Shabbat,
the weekly day of rest.

The focus on preserving traditions is a notable
characteristic of Jewish culture. Many Jewish religious
and cultural practices have developed and adapted over
the millennia, yet the fundamental exhortation to
ensure that long-cherished ways of life are passed on
to future generations remains as strong as ever before.
Many Jewish Americans carry on this belief as they
instill these traditions in their children.

Seeking to preserve their culture and start anew,
Jewish immigrants have departed familiar lands to
pursue their own American dreams for more than 300
years. During some periods, Jews sought refuge in the
United States from the horrors and tragedies of
persecution, pogroms, and the Holocaust. During other
times, they came to seek better lives and greater
economic opportunities for themselves and their
children.

Jewish Americans have immeasurably enriched our Nation.
Unyielding in the face of hardship and tenacious in
following their dreams, Jewish Americans have
surmounted the challenges that every immigrant group
faces, and have made unparalleled contributions. Many
have broken new ground in the arts and sciences. Jewish
American leaders have been essential to all branches
and levels of government. Still more Jewish Americans
have made selfless sacrifices in our Armed Forces. The
United States would not be the country we know without
the achievements of Jewish Americans.

Among the greatest contributions of the Jewish American
community, however, is the example they have set for
all Americans. They have demonstrated that Americans
can choose to maintain cultural traditions while
honoring the principles and beliefs that bind them
together as Americans. Jewish American history
demonstrates how America's diversity enriches and
strengthens us all.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, 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 May 2009 as Jewish
American Heritage Month. I call upon all Americans to
commemorate the proud heritage of Jewish Americans with
appropriate ceremonies and activities.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
twelfth day of May, in the year of our Lord two
thousand nine, and of the Independence of the United
States of America the two hundred and thirty-third.