[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 85 (Wednesday, May 3, 2023)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 27657-27659]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-09523]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 85 / Wednesday, May 3, 2023 / 
Presidential Documents  

[[Page 27657]]


                Proclamation 10560 of April 28, 2023

                
Jewish American Heritage Month, 2023

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                This month, we celebrate the enduring heritage of 
                Jewish Americans, whose values, culture, and 
                contributions have shaped our character as a Nation. 
                For generations, the story of the Jewish people--one of 
                resilience, faith, and hope in the face of adversity, 
                prejudice and persecution--has been woven into the 
                fabric of our Nation's story. It has driven us forward 
                in our ongoing march for justice, equality, and freedom 
                as we recommit to upholding the principles of our 
                Nation's founding and realizing the promise of America 
                for all Americans.

                For centuries, Jewish refugees fleeing oppression and 
                discrimination abroad have sailed to our shores in 
                search of sanctuary. Early on, they fought for 
                religious freedom, helping define one of the bedrock 
                principles upon which America was built. Union soldiers 
                celebrated Passover in the midst of the Civil War. 
                Jewish suffragists fought to expand freedom and 
                justice. And Jewish faith leaders linked arms with 
                giants of the Civil Rights Movement to demand equal 
                rights for all.

                Jewish Americans continue to enrich every part of 
                American life as educators and entrepreneurs, athletes 
                and artists, scientists and entertainers, public 
                officials and activists, labor and community leaders, 
                diplomats and military service members, public health 
                heroes, and more. Last year, I was proud to host the 
                White House's first-ever Jewish New Year reception. 
                During our Hanukkah celebration, I was also proud to 
                unveil the first-ever permanent menorah at the White 
                House--reinforcing the permanency of Jewish culture in 
                America. In my own life, the Jewish community has been 
                a tremendous source of friendship, guidance, and 
                strength through seasons of pain and seasons of joy.

                But there is also a dark side to the celebrated history 
                of the Jewish people--a history marked by genocide, 
                pogrom, and persecution--with a through line that 
                continues in the record rise of antisemitism today. We 
                have witnessed violent attacks on synagogues, bricks 
                thrown through windows of Jewish businesses, swastikas 
                defacing cars and cemeteries, Jewish students harassed 
                on college campuses, and Jews wearing religious attire 
                beaten and shot on streets. Antisemitic conspiracy 
                theories are rampant online, and celebrities are 
                spouting antisemitic hate.

[[Page 27658]]

                These acts are unconscionable and despicable. They 
                carry with them terrifying echoes of the worst chapters 
                in human history. Not only are they a strike against 
                Jews, but they are also a threat to other minority 
                communities and a stain on the soul of our Nation. I 
                decided to run for President after I saw this hatred on 
                display during the rally in Charlottesville, when neo-
                Nazis marched from the shadows spewing the same 
                antisemitic bile that was heard in Germany in the 
                1930s. These incidents remind us that hate never truly 
                goes away--it only hides until it is given just a 
                little oxygen. It is our obligation to ensure that hate 
                can have no safe harbor in America and to protect the 
                sacred ideals enshrined in our Constitution: religious 
                freedom, equality, dignity, and respect. That is the 
                promise of America.

                I have made clear that I will not remain silent in the 
                face of this antisemitic venom, vitriol, and violence. 
                During my first year in office, I signed the bipartisan 
                COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act to help State and local law 
                enforcement better identify and respond to hate crimes. 
                I appointed Deborah Lipstadt, a historian of the 
                Holocaust, as the first Ambassador-level Special Envoy 
                to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism. And my 
                Administration also secured the largest increase in 
                funding ever for the physical security of nonprofits, 
                including synagogues, Jewish Community Centers, and 
                Jewish day schools.

                At my direction, we are also developing the first 
                national strategy to counter antisemitism that outlines 
                comprehensive actions the Federal Government will 
                undertake and that reflects input from over a thousand 
                Jewish community stakeholders, faith and civil rights 
                leaders, State and local officials, and more. This 
                strategy will help combat antisemitism online and 
                offline, including in schools and on campuses; improve 
                security to prevent antisemitic incidents and attacks; 
                and build cross-community solidarity against 
                antisemitism and other forms of hate.

                But governance alone cannot root out antisemitism and 
                hate. All Americans--including business and community 
                leaders, educators, students, athletes, entertainers, 
                and influencers--must help confront bigotry in all its 
                forms. We must each do our part to put an end to 
                antisemitism and hatred and create a culture of respect 
                in our workplaces, schools, and homes and across social 
                media.

                This Jewish American Heritage Month, let us join hands 
                across faiths, races, and backgrounds to make clear 
                that evil, hate, and antisemitism will not prevail. Let 
                us honor the timeless values, contributions, and 
                culture of Jewish Americans, who carry our Nation 
                forward each and every day. And let us rededicate 
                ourselves to the sacred work of creating a more 
                inclusive tomorrow, protecting the diversity that 
                defines who we are as a Nation, and preserving the 
                dignity of every human being--here at home and around 
                the world.

                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 2023 as 
                Jewish American Heritage Month. I call upon all 
                Americans to learn more about the heritage and 
                contributions of Jewish Americans and to observe this 
                month with appropriate programs, activities, and 
                ceremonies.

[[Page 27659]]

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                twenty-eighth day of April, in the year two thousand 
                twenty-three, and of the Independence of the United 
                States of America the two hundred and forty-seventh.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2023-09523
Filed 5-2-23; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3395-F3-P