[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 29, Number 18 (Monday, May 10, 1993)]
[Pages 742-743]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Proclamation 6557--Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month

 May 3, 1993

By the President of the United States

of America

A Proclamation

    This month we honor the heritage and history of Asian and Pacific 
Americans and the contributions they have made to our country: to its 
economic development, its cultural wealth, its scientific and medical 
achievements, its institutes of education, and its government. As we 
celebrate the diversity of our people and their heritage, we remember 
that we are one Nation, united in a common quest for freedom and 
dignity.
    Traders from the Asia-Pacific region reached North America as early 
as the 16th century, but the first significant wave of immigration began 
during the late 1800s. From China, Japan, Korea, the Philippines, and 
the Indian subcontinent they came and found work in America: as miners, 
railroad workers, farmers, and merchants. These settlers and their 
children preserved the rich legacy of their homelands while also 
learning the his- 

[[Page 743]]

tory of our Nation and embracing the traditions that define it.
    While they found many opportunities in America, immigrants from the 
Asia-Pacific region also were victims of discrimination. Some were 
denied the right to buy land or become naturalized citizens solely 
because of their ethnic origin. Such prejudice often led to segregated 
community structures. Once thought of as ghettos, these neighborhoods 
are now vibrant cultural assets and magnets for tourism and trade in the 
cities of which they are a part.
    America has made great progress in advancing civil rights since the 
days when Asian workers were exploited and labored under crushing 
hardship. A second significant wave of immigration brought doctors, 
nurses, engineers, musicians, scientists, and other professionals. Now-
familiar names like Yo Yo Ma, Midori, Seiji Ozawa, Amy Tan, Michael 
Chang, and Kristi Yamaguchi today symbolize the rich heritage that Asian 
and Pacific Americans have added to our culture.
    Today Asian and Pacific Americans represent a large portion of our 
population. The region from which they migrated is now one of the 
world's most dynamic areas of economic growth. America's trade with 
Asian and Pacific countries totals more than $300 billion, a greater 
amount than any other region in the world. The United States maintains 
alliances with countries from the Pacific such as Japan, Korea, the 
Philippines, and Thailand. We will continue to promote economic 
cooperation and the expansion of free markets there. The security of our 
allies and the advancement of human rights in Asia and the Pacific 
benefit both our country and the countries of that region.
    America is an ongoing experiment, an unfinished work. It is 
important that we continually strive to fulfill the ideals that 
attracted the Asian/Pacific peoples and other immigrants to our shores. 
The next century will present many challenges, but the ethnic diversity 
that binds us as a Nation will provide us with the energy and hope we 
need to build a more peaceful and more prosperous world. To honor the 
achievements of Asian/Pacific Americans and to recognize their 
contributions to our Nation, the Congress, by Public Law 102-450, has 
designated the month of May of each year as ``Asian/Pacific American 
Heritage Month.''
    Now, Therefore, I, William J. Clinton, President of the United 
States of America, do hereby proclaim the month of May 1993 as Asian/
Pacific American Heritage Month. I call upon the people of the United 
States to observe this occasion with appropriate programs, ceremonies, 
and activities. I also call upon all Americans to rededicate themselves 
to the principles of inclusion, mutual respect, and social justice.
    In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this third day of 
May, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-three, and of 
the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and 
seventeenth.
                                            William J. Clinton

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 10:41 a.m., May 4, 1993]

Note: This proclamation was published in the Federal Register on May 5.