    [United States Statutes at Large, Volume 128, 113th Congress, 2nd Session]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

    PROCLAMATION 9139--JUNE 5, 2014

    Proclamation 9139 of June 5, 2014

    D-Day National Remembrance Day, 2014

    By the President of the United States of America

    A Proclamation

    On June 6, 1944, before dawn broke across the beaches of Normandy,
    scores of allied service members prepared to fight a battle that would
    decide the fate of freedom in the 20th century. The odds weighed against
    them. That year, the Nazis had fortified the Atlantic Wall

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    against a seaborne invasion, lined the coast with mines, and planted
    sharpened poles to await allied paratroopers. On D-Day, American,
    British, and Canadian forces advanced through thickets of barbed wire
    and scaled heavily protected cliffs. They braved gales of bullets and
    artillery fire, taking heavy losses as they cut through Nazi defenses.
    Thousands gave their last full measure of devotion, and by the end of
    the day, the ground on which they died was free once more.
    Victory on D-Day dealt a significant blow to an ideology fueled by
    hatred. It allowed America and our allies to secure a foothold in
    France, open a path to Berlin, and liberate a continent from the grip of
    tyranny. It made possible the achievements that followed the end of
    World War II--the Marshall Plan, the NATO alliance, and the shared
    prosperity and security that flowed from each.
    Seventy years later, we pay tribute to the service members who secured a
    beachhead on an unforgiving shore--the patriots who, through their
    courage and sacrifice, changed the course of an entire century. Today,
    as we carry on the struggle for liberty and universal human rights, let
    us draw strength from a moment when free nations beat back the forces of
    oppression and gave new hope to the world.
    NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, 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 June 6, 2014, as D-Day
    National Remembrance Day. I call upon all Americans to observe this day
    with programs, ceremonies, and activities that honor those who fought
    and died so men and women they had never met might know what it is to be
    free.
    IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this fifth day of June,
    in the year of our Lord two thousand fourteen, and of the Independence
    of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-eighth.
    BARACK OBAMA