    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2002, Book I)]
    [February 9, 2002]
    [Pages 204-205]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    The President's Radio Address
    February 9, 2002

        Good morning. Recently, I had the honor of welcoming Coretta Scott
    King and her children to the White House
    to observe Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday. Shortly after the holiday
    I visited the school that young Dr. King attended in Atlanta, Booker T.
    Washington High School. It was a moving experience to see the place
    where this great American began his life of learning.
        February is Black History Month, a time of learning for all of us.
    Ever since the historian and educator Carter Woodson put Black history
    on the calendar back in 1926, February has been a time to reflect on the
    contributions of African Americans and the need to remember and
    celebrate all of our history.
        Nobody can understand this country without understanding the African
    American experience. It began when America began. And throughout our
    history, the experience of Black Americans has challenged every American
    to live up to the best ideals of our country: freedom, equality, and
    justice.
        We have come far, and we have a way yet to go. But our goal is the
    same goal that Dr. King set for us, to be one people in fact as well as
    in name. And one way to realize this goal is the same way that Carter
    Woodson showed us, education.
        Education is the beginning of opportunity. Through the historic
    education reform bill I recently signed, we are returning high standards
    and accountability to all our public schools. And my administration
    strongly supports the work and the mission of our historically Black
    colleges and universities.
        My first budget pledged a 30 percent increase over 4 years and
    Federal support for historically Black colleges and universities and
    Hispanic-serving institutions. And my new budget, even in a time of
    recession and war, keeps us on track to reach that target. These are
    schools like Morehouse College in Atlanta, where Dr. King earned

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    his first degree, schools like Howard University in Washington, DC,
    where Carter Woodson was dean of the College of Liberal Arts.
        Our historically Black colleges and universities opened the door to
    knowledge when other doors were barred. And today, they offer exciting
    opportunities to young people to contribute to their country.
        February is a month rich in important anniversaries. It is the month
    in which Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass were born, two men, very
    different, who together ended slavery. It is the month of the birth of
    W.E.B. DuBois, whose eloquent histories opened our country's eyes to its
    own past and possibilities, and of the birth of Rosa Parks, who
    courageously refused to yield to injustice on a Montgomery, Alabama,
    bus.
        Today, we are fighting for freedom in a new way and on new
    battlefields. And we continue to press for equal opportunity for every
    American here at home. We want every American to be educated up to his
    or her full potential. We salute the accomplishments of our historically
    Black colleges and universities. And I hope all Americans will draw
    inspiration from the message of Black History Month.
        Thank you for listening.

    Note: The address was recorded at 9:30 a.m. on February 7 in the Cabinet
    Room at the White House for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on February 9. The
    transcript was made available by the Office of the Press Secretary on
    February 8 but was embargoed for release until the broadcast. The Office
    of the Press Secretary also released a Spanish language transcript of
    this address. The National African American History Month proclamation
    of February 1 is listed in Appendix D at the end of this volume.