[United States Statutes at Large, Volume 133, 116th Congress, 1st Session]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

 
Proclamation 9910 of July 19, 2019

Captive Nations Week, 2019

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

The United States has always been a source of hope to people around the
world fighting to replace tyranny with liberty, justice, and the rule of
law. During Captive Nations Week, we reaffirm our Nation's unwavering
support for those who strive to be free from oppression. We condemn
repressive regimes that deny people their God-given rights, including
life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
President Dwight D. Eisenhower first proclaimed Captive Nations Week in
1959, when freedom in the United States was a bulwark against the
totalitarianism of communist regimes in Eastern Europe and elsewhere.
Even today, many decades since the end of the Cold War unleashed a new
era of democratic flourishing, tyrannical and coercive governments still
threaten the freedom and well-being of countless individuals worldwide.
They persecute people for worshiping their God, and jail people for
daring to speak out and for demanding even the most basic forms of
transparency and accountability. They use food distribution as a tool of
social control, manipulate electoral processes, and undermine the will
and spirit of their people through intimidation and fear. The United
States stands with repressed people around the world and urges
governments everywhere to respect the God-given

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rights of every individual and to embrace the establishment of
representative government.
As Americans, we are privileged and blessed to live in a Nation in which
our Constitution protects fundamental rights like freedom of expression,
association, religion, and peaceful assembly. We will continue to
advocate for those who are unjustly denied these and other rights, and
stand against brutality and oppression, which violate the dignity of all
people.
The Congress, by Joint Resolution approved July 17, 1959 (73 Stat. 212),
has authorized and requested the President to issue a proclamation
designating the third week of July of each year as ``Captive Nations
Week.''
NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, 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 July 21 through July
27, 2019, as Captive Nations Week. I call upon all Americans to reaffirm
our commitment to supporting those around the world striving for
liberty, justice and the rule of law.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this nineteenth day of
July, in the year of our Lord two thousand nineteen, and of the
Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-
fourth.
DONALD J. TRUMP