[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 64 (Tuesday, April 3, 2012)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 20275-20276]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-8162]



[[Page 20273]]

Vol. 77

Tuesday,

No. 64

April 3, 2012

Part IV





The President





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Proclamation 8789--Vietnam Veterans Day



Memorandum of March 30, 2012--Establishing a Working Group on the 
Intersection of HIV/AIDS, Violence Against Women and Girls, and Gender-
related Health Disparities
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  Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 64 / Tuesday, April 3, 2012 / 
Presidential Documents  

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 Title 3--
 The President

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                Proclamation 8789 of March 29, 2012

                
Vietnam Veterans Day

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                On January 12, 1962, United States Army pilots lifted 
                more than 1,000 South Vietnamese service members over 
                jungle and underbrush to capture a National Liberation 
                Front stronghold near Saigon. Operation Chopper marked 
                America's first combat mission against the Viet Cong, 
                and the beginning of one of our longest and most 
                challenging wars. Through more than a decade of 
                conflict that tested the fabric of our Nation, the 
                service of our men and women in uniform stood true. 
                Fifty years after that fateful mission, we honor the 
                more than 3 million Americans who served, we pay 
                tribute to those we have laid to rest, and we reaffirm 
                our dedication to showing a generation of veterans the 
                respect and support of a grateful Nation.

                The Vietnam War is a story of service members of 
                different backgrounds, colors, and creeds who came 
                together to complete a daunting mission. It is a story 
                of Americans from every corner of our Nation who left 
                the warmth of family to serve the country they loved. 
                It is a story of patriots who braved the line of fire, 
                who cast themselves into harm's way to save a friend, 
                who fought hour after hour, day after day to preserve 
                the liberties we hold dear. From Ia Drang to Hue, they 
                won every major battle of the war and upheld the 
                highest traditions of our Armed Forces.

                Eleven years of combat left their imprint on a 
                generation. Thousands returned home bearing shrapnel 
                and scars; still more were burdened by the invisible 
                wounds of post-traumatic stress, of Agent Orange, of 
                memories that would never fade. More than 58,000 laid 
                down their lives in service to our Nation. Now and 
                forever, their names are etched into two faces of black 
                granite, a lasting memorial to those who bore 
                conflict's greatest cost.

                Our veterans answered our country's call and served 
                with honor, and on March 29, 1973, the last of our 
                troops left Vietnam. Yet, in one of the war's most 
                profound tragedies, many of these men and women came 
                home to be shunned or neglected--to face treatment 
                unbefitting their courage and a welcome unworthy of 
                their example. We must never let this happen again. 
                Today, we reaffirm one of our most fundamental 
                obligations: to show all who have worn the uniform of 
                the United States the respect and dignity they deserve, 
                and to honor their sacrifice by serving them as well as 
                they served us. Half a century after those helicopters 
                swept off the ground and into the annals of history, we 
                pay tribute to the fallen, the missing, the wounded, 
                the millions who served, and the millions more who 
                awaited their return. Our Nation stands stronger for 
                their service, and on Vietnam Veterans Day, we honor 
                their proud legacy with our deepest gratitude.

                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 29, 2012, as 
                Vietnam Veterans Day. I call upon all Americans to 
                observe this day with appropriate programs, ceremonies, 
                and activities that commemorate the 50-year anniversary 
                of the Vietnam War.

[[Page 20276]]

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                twenty-ninth day of March, in the year of our Lord two 
                thousand twelve, and of the Independence of the United 
                States of America the two hundred and thirty-sixth.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2012-8162
Filed 4-2-12; 11:15 am]
Billing code 3295-F2-P