[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 201 (Friday, October 17, 2014)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 62297-62298]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-24845]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 201 / Friday, October 17, 2014 / 
Presidential Documents  

[[Page 62297]]


                Proclamation 9191 of October 10, 2014

                
International Day of the Girl, 2014

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                In every community across the globe, girls and women 
                should have the opportunity to learn, grow, and achieve 
                their full potential. All nations have a responsibility 
                to protect the basic human rights of all people, and 
                when they do--when girls and women are fully valued as 
                equal participants in a country's politics and 
                economy--societies are more likely to succeed.

                But throughout the world, too many girls and women are 
                subjected to laws and traditions that serve only to 
                oppress and exclude. Gender-based violence--from 
                domestic violence and human trafficking to genital 
                cutting and early and forced marriage--condemns girls 
                to cycles of dependence, fear, and abuse. Harmful 
                cultural norms and prejudices that tell young women how 
                they are expected to look and act deny the dignity and 
                equality we want for all our daughters. On 
                International Day of the Girl, we stand with girls, 
                women, and male and female advocates in every country 
                who are calling for freedom and justice, and we renew 
                our commitment to build a world where all girls feel 
                safe, supported, and encouraged to pursue their own 
                measure of happiness.

                Promoting gender equality and lifting up the status of 
                girls and women have been central to my 
                Administration's national security strategy and foreign 
                policy. We are supporting quality education for girls 
                around the world, advancing policies that enable women 
                and families to live healthier lives, and investing in 
                programs that help nations prevent and respond to 
                violence against girls and women. We are also working 
                to end human trafficking, a crime that affects far too 
                many communities both here at home and around the 
                globe, and of which many victims are girls and women.

                As we work to transform the lives of girls and women 
                abroad, we have also redoubled our efforts to ensure 
                there are no barriers to their success here at home. 
                Vice President Joe Biden's 1is2many initiative is 
                raising awareness about the high rates of teen dating 
                violence, and my Administration is engaging school 
                districts, college students, and community members as 
                part of our effort to end sexual assault and domestic 
                violence. Through the Affordable Care Act, we have 
                expanded access to quality, affordable health care to 
                more girls and prohibited insurers from charging them 
                extra simply because of their gender. We continue to 
                invest in community efforts to reduce teen pregnancy. 
                And we have made it a priority to educate and inspire 
                our youngest girls by increasing opportunities for 
                high-quality preschool. As they grow, we will make 
                certain they receive the education and training needed 
                to succeed in the jobs of today and tomorrow--jobs that 
                we are working to ensure will offer equal pay for equal 
                work.

                As Americans, we must see the hopes and dreams of our 
                own girls and realize that these are the same dreams of 
                girls around the world. We cannot afford to silence the 
                girl who holds the key to changing her community, or 
                the voice that speaks up to call for peace or further 
                scientific discovery. We cannot allow violence to snuff 
                out the aspirations of young women in America, and we 
                must not accept it anywhere in the world. Today, we 
                resolve to do more than simply shine a light on 
                inequality. With partners

[[Page 62298]]

                across the globe, we support the girls who reach for 
                their future in the face of unimaginable obstacles, and 
                we continue our work to change attitudes and shift 
                beliefs until every girl has the opportunities she 
                deserves to shape her own destiny and fulfill her 
                boundless promise.

                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 October 11, 2014, as 
                International Day of the Girl. I call upon all 
                Americans to observe this day with programs, 
                ceremonies, and activities that advance equality and 
                opportunity for girls everywhere.

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

[FR Doc. 2014-24845
Filed 10-16-14; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3295-F5