[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 241 (Friday, December 14, 2012)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 74345-74346]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-30312]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 241 / Friday, December 14, 2012 / 
Presidential Documents  

[[Page 74345]]


                Proclamation 8915 of December 10, 2012

                
Human Rights Day and Human Rights Week, 2012

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                Sixty-four years ago, a group of nations emerging from 
                the shadow of war joined together to light a path 
                toward lasting peace. They adopted the Universal 
                Declaration of Human Rights--a revolutionary document 
                that recognized the inherent dignity and inalienable 
                rights of all people as the ``foundation of freedom, 
                justice, and peace in the world.'' As we mark the 
                anniversary of that historic act, we celebrate the 
                rights the Declaration recognized and recommit to 
                strengthening them in the 21st century.

                The United States was built on the promise that freedom 
                and fairness are not endowed only to some--they are the 
                birthright of all. Ordinary Americans have fought to 
                fully realize that vision for more than two centuries, 
                courageously forging a democracy that empowers each of 
                us equally and affords every citizen due process under 
                the law. Just as we have cultivated these rights here 
                at home, so have we worked to promote them abroad. 
                Societies across the globe are reaching toward a future 
                where leaders are fairly and duly elected; where 
                everyone can get an education and make a good living; 
                where women and girls are free from violence, as well 
                as free to pursue the same opportunities as men and 
                boys; and where the voice of the people rings clear and 
                true. As they do, the United States stands with them, 
                ready to uphold the basic decency and human rights that 
                underlie everything we have achieved and all our 
                progress yet to come.

                Men and women everywhere long for the freedom to 
                determine their destiny, the dignity that comes with 
                work, the comfort that comes with faith, and the 
                justice that exists when governments serve their 
                people. These dreams are common to people all around 
                the world, and the values they represent are universal. 
                This week, we rededicate ourselves to fortifying civil 
                rights in America, while reaffirming that all people 
                around the world should live free from the threat of 
                extrajudicial killing, torture, oppression, and 
                discrimination. And we renew our promise that the 
                United States will be a partner to any nation, large or 
                small, that will contribute to a world that is more 
                peaceful and more prosperous, more just and more free.

                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 December 10, 2012, as 
                Human Rights Day and the week beginning December 10, 
                2012, as Human Rights Week. I call upon the people of 
                the United States to mark these observances with 
                appropriate ceremonies and activities.

[[Page 74346]]

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

[FR Doc. 2012-30312
Filed 12-13-12; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3295-F3