[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 97 (Tuesday, May 20, 2014)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 29067-29068]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-11842]



[[Page 29065]]

Vol. 79

Tuesday,

No. 97

May 20, 2014

Part IV





The President





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Proclamation 9125--60th Anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education
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  Federal Register / Vol. 79 , No. 97 / Tuesday, May 20, 2014 / 
Presidential Documents  

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 Title 3--
 The President

[[Page 29067]]

                Proclamation 9125 of May 15, 2014

                
60th Anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                May 17, 1954, marked a turning point in America's 
                journey toward a more perfect Union. On that day, the 
                Supreme Court handed down a unanimous decision in Brown 
                v. Board of Education, outlawing racial segregation in 
                our Nation's schools. Brown overturned the doctrine of 
                ``separate but equal,'' which the Court had established 
                in the 1896 case of Plessy v. Ferguson. For more than 
                half a century, Plessy gave constitutional backing to 
                discrimination, and civil rights organizations like the 
                National Association for the Advancement of Colored 
                People faced an uphill battle as they sought equality, 
                opportunity, and justice under the law.

                Brown v. Board of Education shifted the legal and moral 
                compass of our Nation. It declared that education 
                ``must be made available to all on equal terms'' and 
                demanded that America's promise exclude no one. Yet the 
                Supreme Court alone could not destroy segregation. 
                Brown had unlocked the schoolhouse doors, but even 
                years later, African-American children braved mobs as 
                they walked to school, while U.S. Marshals kept the 
                peace. From lunch counters and city streets to buses 
                and ballot boxes, American citizens struggled to 
                realize their basic rights. A decade after the Court's 
                ruling, Brown's moral guidance was translated into the 
                enforcement measures of the Civil Rights Act and the 
                Voting Rights Act.

                Thanks to the men and women who fought for equality in 
                the courtroom, the legislature, and the hearts and 
                minds of the American people, we have confined 
                legalized segregation to the dustbin of history. Yet 
                today, the hope and promise of Brown remains 
                unfulfilled. In the years to come, we must continue 
                striving toward equal opportunities for all our 
                children, from access to advanced classes to 
                participation in the same extracurricular activities. 
                Because when children learn and play together, they 
                grow, build, and thrive together.

                On the 60th Anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education, 
                let us heed the words of Justice Thurgood Marshall, who 
                so ably argued the case against segregation, ``None of 
                us got where we are solely by pulling ourselves up by 
                our bootstraps. We got here because somebody . . . bent 
                down and helped us pick up our boots.'' Let us march 
                together, meet our obligations to one another, and 
                remember that progress has never come easily--but even 
                in the face of impossible odds, those who love their 
                country can change it.

                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 17, 2014, as the 
                60th Anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education. I call 
                upon all Americans to observe this day with programs, 
                ceremonies, and activities that celebrate this landmark 
                decision and advance the causes of equality and 
                opportunity for all.

[[Page 29068]]

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                fifteenth day of May, 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. 2014-11842
Filed 5-19-14; 11:15 am]
Billing code 3295-F4