[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1997, Book II)]
[July 2, 1997]
[Page 903]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Message on the Observance of Independence Day, 1997
July 2, 1997

    I am pleased to join my fellow Americans across the nation and 
around the world in celebrating Independence Day.
    Looking back across two centuries, we still marvel at the courage 
and vision of our nation's founders. With clear eyes and staunch hearts, 
they fashioned a new form of government for our new country, a 
government that honors human dignity and protects individual rights. 
They devised a democracy strong enough to endure through the ages, yet 
flexible enough to meet new challenges and achieve new dreams. And in 
doing so, they made America a beacon of hope for generations of people 
around the world who cherish liberty and justice.
    We have much to celebrate on this Independence Day. The journey our 
nation began more than 220 years ago has brought us to a time of peace 
and prosperity, a time of unprecedented opportunity to realize the full 
potential of all our citizens. As heirs to the freedom and equality 
bequeathed to us in the Declaration of Independence, it is now our 
responsibility--and our privilege--to build on that legacy and to ensure 
that America's promise holds true for all our people.
    As we join with family and friends to commemorate another Fourth of 
July, let us resolve to make America a land where prejudice and 
discrimination have no place; to recognize that the values and ideals we 
share are more powerful and enduring than any force that would divide 
us; and to enter the twenty-first century as the ``more perfect Union'' 
first envisioned by our founders two centuries ago.
    Hillary joins me in extending best wishes for a wonderful Fourth of 
July celebration.

                                                            Bill Clinton