[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 220 (Thursday, November 14, 2024)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 89907-89908]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-26702]
Presidential Documents
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 220 / Thursday, November 14, 2024 /
Presidential Documents
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Title 3--
The President
[[Page 89907]]
Proclamation 10856 of November 8, 2024
World Freedom Day, 2024
By the President of the United States of America
A Proclamation
Today marks 35 years since the Berlin Wall came down.
Its fall was one of the greatest advances in human
dignity in my lifetime. As we celebrate this
anniversary, may we all remember that what brought the
Berlin Wall down and lifted the Iron Curtain is what
keeps the flame of liberty shining bright around the
world: the determination of free people everywhere who
never fail to stand up for their freedoms and their
democracy.
I still remember when, as a young Senator, I visited
West Berlin and saw what it meant to live in a divided
city, country, and continent. Then, in 1989, along with
millions of people around the world, I watched the
70,000 brave souls gathered in Leipzig, Germany, crying
out for freedom. After the wall came down, some feared
the reunification of Germany would revive old hatreds
and rivalries, but leaders of America and Germany
dreamed together of a much better future. The
achievement of a Germany whole and free lives on,
exceeding everyone's expectations, and the dream of
Europe whole and free remains the work of our time. My
Administration is committed to pushing back against
Putin's vicious attack on Ukraine. It is another battle
in the long struggle for freedom and against aggression
and tyranny.
Together with our partners and allies, the United
States is continuing to fight for the freedom and
rights of people around the world. We are working to
build a future where women and girls share equal rights
and opportunities in their communities; where
Indigenous groups, people with disabilities, and
racial, ethnic, and religious minorities live free from
discrimination; and where LGBTQI+ people can live lives
free from fear and hate. And we must all stay committed
to supporting democracy around the world--and at home.
I call on the American people to stand up in defense of
our democracy because every generation must do the work
of defending, protecting, and safeguarding it.
The future will be won by those who unleash the full
potential of their people to breathe and think freely,
innovate and educate daringly, and live and love openly
and without fear. That is the soul of democracy--and I
have seen it all around the world, from the brave men
and women who brought down the Berlin Wall to the
people who are fighting in every region for freedom,
justice, and dignity. Today, may we strengthen our
commitment to our democracy and to one another, knowing
that the darkness that drives autocracy is no match for
the flame of liberty that lights the souls of free
people everywhere.
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 November 9,
2024, as World Freedom Day. I call upon the people of
the United States of America to remember the hope
symbolized by the fall of the Berlin Wall and reaffirm
our dedication to freedom and democracy.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
eighth day of November, in the year of our Lord two
thousand twenty-four, and of
[[Page 89908]]
the Independence of the United States of America the
two hundred and forty-ninth.
(Presidential Sig.)
[FR Doc. 2024-26702
Filed 11-13-24; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3395-F4-P