[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 85 (Wednesday, May 5, 2021)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 23843-23844]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-09570]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 85 / Wednesday, May 5, 2021 / 
Presidential Documents  

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 Title 3--
 The President

[[Page 23843]]

                Proclamation 10189 of April 30, 2021

                
Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific 
                Islander Heritage Month, 2021

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                This May, during Asian American and Native Hawaiian/
                Pacific Islander Heritage Month, we recognize the 
                history and achievements of Asian Americans, Native 
                Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (AANHPIs) across our 
                Nation. In the midst of a difficult year of pain and 
                fear, we reflect on the tradition of leadership, 
                resilience, and courage shown by AANHPI communities, 
                and recommit to the struggle for AANHPI equity.

                Asian Americans, and Native Hawaiians, and Pacific 
                Islanders make our Nation more vibrant through 
                diversity of cultures, languages, and religions. There 
                is no single story of the AANHPI experience, but rather 
                a diversity of contributions that enrich America's 
                culture and society and strengthen the United States' 
                role as a global leader. The American story as we know 
                it would be impossible without the strength, 
                contributions, and legacies of AANHPIs who have helped 
                build and unite this country in each successive 
                generation. From laying railroad tracks, tilling 
                fields, and starting businesses, to caring for our 
                loved ones and honorably serving our Nation in uniform, 
                AANHPI communities are deeply rooted in the history of 
                the United States.

                We also celebrate and honor the invaluable 
                contributions the AANHPI communities have made to our 
                Nation's culture and the arts, law, science and 
                technology, sports and public service--including the 
                courageous AANHPIs who have served on the front lines 
                of the COVID-19 pandemic as health care providers, 
                first responders, teachers, and other essential 
                workers.

                During this year's Asian American and Native Hawaiian/
                Pacific Islander Heritage Month, our Nation celebrates 
                the achievements of Vice President Harris, the first 
                person of South Asian descent to hold the Office of the 
                Vice President. Vice President Harris has blazed a 
                trail and set an example for young people across the 
                country to aspire to follow, including members of 
                AANHPI communities and AANHPI women in particular.

                In spite of the strength shown and successes achieved, 
                the American dream remains out of reach for far too 
                many AANHPI families. AANHPI communities face systemic 
                barriers to economic justice, health equity, 
                educational attainment, and personal safety. These 
                challenges are compounded by stark gaps in Federal 
                data, which too often fails to reflect the diversity of 
                AANHPI communities and the particular barriers that 
                Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, Southeast Asian, and 
                South Asian communities in the United States continue 
                to face.

                My Administration also recognizes the heightened fear 
                felt by many Asian American communities in the wake of 
                increasing rates of anti-Asian harassment and violence 
                during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the increasingly 
                observable layers of hate now directed toward women and 
                elders of Asian descent in particular. Our Nation 
                continues to grieve the senseless killings of six women 
                of Asian descent in Atlanta, and the unconscionable 
                acts of violence victimizing our beloved Asian American 
                seniors in cities across the country.

[[Page 23844]]

                Acts of anti-Asian bias are wrong, they are un-
                American, and they must stop. My Administration will 
                continue to stand shoulder to shoulder with AANHPI 
                communities in condemning, denouncing, and preventing 
                these acts of violence. We will continue to look for 
                opportunities to heal together and fight against the 
                racism and xenophobia that still exists in this 
                country.

                Present-day inequities faced by AANHPI communities are 
                rooted in our Nation's history of exclusion, 
                discrimination, racism, and xenophobia against Asian 
                Americans. Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and 
                Pacific Islanders have endured a long history of 
                injustice--including the Page Act of 1875, the Chinese 
                Exclusion Act of 1882, the incarceration of Japanese 
                American citizens during World War II, the murder of 
                Vincent Chin, the mass shooting of Southeast Asian 
                refugee children in 1989, and the targeting of South 
                Asian Americans, especially those who are Muslim, 
                Hindu, or Sikh, after the national tragedy of 9/11. It 
                is long past time for Federal leadership to advance 
                inclusion, belonging, and acceptance for all AANHPI 
                communities. My Administration is committed to a whole-
                of-government effort to advance equity, root out racial 
                injustices in our Federal institutions, and finally 
                deliver the promise of America for all Americans.

                Vice President Harris and I affirm that Asian 
                Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders make 
                our Nation stronger. I urge my fellow Americans to join 
                us this month in celebrating AANHPI history, people, 
                and cultures.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., 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 2021 as 
                Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander 
                Heritage Month. I call upon the people of the United 
                States to learn more about the history of Asian 
                Americans, Native Hawaiians, 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 twenty-one, and of the Independence of the 
                United States of America the two hundred and forty-
                fifth.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2021-09570
Filed 5-4-21; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3295-F1-P