Irish-American Heritage Month, 2014

Proclamation 9084 of February 28, 2014

Irish-American Heritage Month, 2014

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

Centuries after America welcomed the first sons and
daughters of the Emerald Isle to our shores, Irish
heritage continues to enrich our Nation. This month, we
reflect on proud traditions handed down through the
generations, and we celebrate the many threads of green
woven into the red, white, and blue.

Irish Americans have defended our country through times
of war, strengthened communities from coast to coast,
and poured sweat and blood into building our
infrastructure and raising our skyscrapers. Some
endured hunger, hardship, and prejudice; many rose to
be leaders of government, industry, or culture. Their
journey is a testament to the resilience of the Irish
character, a people who never stopped dreaming of a
brighter future and never stopped striving to make that
dream a reality. Today, Americans of all backgrounds
can find common ground in the values of faith and
perseverance, and we can all draw strength from the
unshakable belief that through hard work and sacrifice,
we can forge better lives for ourselves and our
families.

The American and Irish peoples enjoy a friendship
deepened by both shared heritage and shared ideals. On
the international stage, we are proud to work in
concert toward a freer, more just world. As we honor
that enduring connection during Irish-American Heritage
Month, let us look forward to many more generations of
partnership. May the bond between our peoples only grow
in the centuries to come.

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 March 2014 as Irish-
American Heritage Month. I call upon all Americans to
observe this month with appropriate ceremonies,
activities, and programs.

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