[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 87 (Tuesday, May 6, 2014)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 25641-25642]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-10446]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 87 / Tuesday, May 6, 2014 / 
Presidential Documents  

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 Title 3--
 The President

[[Page 25641]]

                Proclamation 9108 of April 30, 2014

                
Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage 
                Month, 2014

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                During Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) 
                Heritage Month, we celebrate the accomplishments of 
                Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific 
                Islanders, and we reflect on the many ways they have 
                enriched our Nation. Like America itself, the AAPI 
                community draws strength from the diversity of its many 
                distinct cultures--each with vibrant histories and 
                unique perspectives to bring to our national life. 
                Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific 
                Islanders have helped build, defend, and strengthen our 
                Nation--as farm workers and railroad laborers; as 
                entrepreneurs and scientists; as artists, activists, 
                and leaders of government. They have gone beyond, 
                embodying the soaring aspirations of the American 
                spirit.

                This month marks 145 years since the final spike was 
                hammered into the transcontinental railroad, an 
                achievement made possible by Chinese laborers, who did 
                the majority of this backbreaking and dangerous work. 
                This May, they will receive long-overdue recognition as 
                they are inducted into the Labor Hall of Honor. 
                Generations of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and 
                Pacific Islanders have helped make this country what it 
                is today. Yet they have also faced a long history of 
                injustice--from the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii 
                and its devastating impact on the history, language, 
                and culture of Native Hawaiians; to opportunity-
                limiting laws like the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 
                and the Immigration Act of 1924; to the internment of 
                Japanese Americans during World War II. Even today, 
                South Asian Americans, especially those who are Muslim, 
                Hindu, and Sikh, are targets of suspicion and violence.

                With courage, grit, and an abiding belief in American 
                ideals, Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific 
                Islanders have challenged our Nation to be better, and 
                my Administration remains committed to doing its part. 
                Nearly 5 years ago, I re-established the White House 
                Initiative on AAPIs. The Initiative addresses 
                disparities in health care, education, and economic 
                opportunity by ensuring Asian Americans and Pacific 
                Islanders receive equal access to government programs 
                and services.

                We are also determined to pass comprehensive 
                immigration reform that would modernize our legal 
                immigration system, create a pathway to earned 
                citizenship for undocumented immigrants, hold employers 
                accountable, and strengthen our border security. These 
                commonsense measures would bring relief to Asian 
                Americans and Pacific Islanders who have experienced 
                this broken system firsthand, and they would allow our 
                country to welcome more highly skilled workers eager to 
                contribute to America's success.

                This month, as we recall our hard-fought progress, let 
                us resolve to continue moving forward. Together, let us 
                ensure the laws respect everyone, civil rights apply to 
                everyone, and everyone who works hard and plays by the 
                rules has a chance to get ahead.

                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 2014 as Asian 
                American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. I call 
                upon all Americans to visit www.WhiteHouse.gov/AAPI to 
                learn more about the history of Asian

[[Page 25642]]

                Americans and Pacific Islanders, and to observe this 
                month with appropriate programs and activities.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                thirtieth day of April, 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.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2014-10446
Filed 5-5-14; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3295-F4