[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 115 (Wednesday, June 16, 1999)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 32381-32382]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-15490]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 64, No. 115 / Wednesday, June 16, 1999 / 
Presidential Documents  

[[Page 32381]]


                Proclamation 7204 of June 11, 1999

                
Flag Day and National Flag Week, 1999

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                Since its adoption in 1777 by the Continental Congress, 
                the Stars and Stripes has symbolized the promise of 
                America. This promise--of equality, justice under the 
                law, freedom from tyranny, and inclusion in a 
                government of the people--beckons immigrants to our 
                shores today just as it has for more than two 
                centuries. Each time the Stars and Stripes is raised 
                over our homes, public buildings, schools, or community 
                gathering places, it proclaims that our Nation's great 
                experiment in democracy is alive and well.

                The stately design of the Stars and Stripes celebrates 
                America's diversity while proclaiming the unity of our 
                Nation. Its white stars, whose shifting constellation 
                has chronicled the growth of our Nation, are the 
                ancient symbols of a sovereign domain; they lie on a 
                field of blue that represents loyalty, justice, and 
                truth. Thus our flag describes the unique Republic 
                designed by our founders, in which States that vary 
                widely in geography, history, and culture are joined in 
                sustaining the common goals and ideals our Nation holds 
                dear. The Stars and Stripes reminds us that, wherever 
                we come from across our country, we are all first and 
                foremost Americans.

                Today, as we stand at the threshold of the 21st 
                century, we have a special opportunity to renew our 
                flag's heritage and to honor the spirit of resilience 
                in our national character that it signifies. As part of 
                this effort, the White House Millennium Council's 
                ``Save America's Treasures Project,'' created by the 
                First Lady, is helping to restore and preserve the 
                original Star-Spangled Banner at the Smithsonian's 
                National Museum of American History. This banner, ``so 
                gallantly streaming'' as the British navy retreated 
                from Baltimore Harbor after a failed assault on Fort 
                McHenry in 1814, is immortalized in the bold and 
                patriotic words of Francis Scott Key that now serve as 
                our National Anthem. From the fledgling Nation of Key's 
                time, defiantly opposing domination by European powers, 
                the United States has evolved into a Nation of 
                unrivaled influence in the world with an unparalleled 
                commitment to democracy and human rights. During Flag 
                Day and National Flag Week, we honor this incredible 
                journey and the bright future it has made possible.

                To commemorate the adoption of our flag, the Congress, 
                by joint resolution approved August 3, 1949 (63 Stat. 
                492), designated June 14 of each year as ``Flag Day'' 
                and requested the President to issue an annual 
                proclamation calling for its observance and for the 
                display of the Flag of the United States on all Federal 
                Government buildings. The Congress also requested the 
                President, by joint resolution approved June 9, 1966 
                (80 Stat. 194), to issue annually a proclamation 
                designating the week in which June 14 falls as 
                ``National Flag Week'' and calling upon all citizens of 
                the United States to display the flag during that week.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, WILLIAM J. CLINTON, President of the 
                United States of America, do hereby proclaim June 14, 
                1999, as Flag Day and the week beginning June 13, 1999, 
                as National Flag Week. I direct the appropriate 
                officials to display the flag on all Federal Government 
                buildings during that week, and I urge all Americans to 
                observe Flag Day and National

[[Page 32382]]

                Flag Week by flying the Stars and Stripes from their 
                homes and other suitable places.

                I also call upon the people of the United States to 
                observe with pride and all due ceremony those days from 
                Flag Day through Independence Day, also set aside by 
                the Congress (89 Stat. 211), as a time to honor our 
                Nation, to celebrate our heritage in public gatherings 
                and activities, and to publicly recite the Pledge of 
                Allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                eleventh day of June, in the year of our Lord nineteen 
                hundred and ninety-nine, and of the Independence of the 
                United States of America the two hundred and twenty-
                third.

                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 99-15490
Filed 6-15-99; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3195-01-P