[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 29, Number 45 (Monday, November 15, 1993)]
[Pages 2302-2303]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Proclamation 6621--Veterans Day, 1993

 November 5, 1993

By the President of the United States

of America

A Proclamation

    Veterans Day is a time for Americans to thank our Nation's military 
veterans for the sacrifices they have made to defend and preserve the 
blessings of liberty. During times of war and times of peace, these men 
and women have ensured that future generations would enjoy the life, 
liberty, and pursuit of happiness promised by our Nation's Founders. We 
have much to learn from all who have served.
    In the major wars and numerous smaller conflicts fought by our 
Nation's Armed Forces, our men and women in uniform have shaped our 
Nation through their great sacrifices to safeguard our freedom. Through 
the War of Independence and the many wrenching conflicts of the 19th 
century, Americans preserved our Nation with their bravery and their 
commitment to duty and country. In the conflicts of our century, men and 
women in the Armed Forces have successfully defended our security, 
freedom, and ideals, helping to build America into a greater Nation.
    On this day, we should pay special tribute to the more than 27 
million living American veterans. Seventy-five years ago on November 11, 
the Armistice was signed, ending World War I, ``the war to end all 
wars.'' More than 32,000 soldiers of the nearly 5 million who fought in 
World War I are still living, serving as a reminder of the struggles 
through which they secured our safety. Many more veterans from World War 
II and the Korean Conflict still serve their country as career soldiers 
and civilians, tempered with the experience of war. Vietnam veterans 
continue to help our Nation adjust to a new international security 
environment often characterized by regional conflicts similar to the war 
in which they fought.
    Living veterans, having once served our country in uniform, now fill 
such key roles as teachers, police officers, business owners, doctors, 
lawyers, government officials, and

[[Page 2303]]

volunteers, sustaining our society secured by their service.

    In a greater sense, this day cannot fully honor America's veterans 
who have risked and sacrificed their lives. But we can resolve to 
continue the struggle for freedom that they made their duty and to 
dedicate our lives to ensuring that their valiant efforts shall never 
have been in vain.

    In order that we may pay due tribute to those who have served in our 
Armed Forces, the Congress has provided (5 U.S.C. 6103(a)) that November 
11 of each year shall be set aside as a legal public holiday to honor 
America's veterans.

    Now, Therefore, I, William J. Clinton, President of the United 
States of America, do hereby proclaim Thursday, November 11, 1993, as 
``Veterans Day.'' I urge all Americans to honor the resolution and 
commitment of our veterans through appropriate public ceremonies and 
private prayers. I also call upon Federal, State, and local government 
officials to display the flag of the United States and to encourage and 
participate in patriotic activities in their communities. I invite civic 
and fraternal organizations, churches, schools, businesses, unions, and 
the media to support this national observance with suitable 
commemorative expressions and programs.

    In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this fifth day of 
November, 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 
eighteenth.

                                            William J. Clinton

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 11:47 a.m., November 8, 
1993]

Note: This proclamation was released by the Office of the Press 
Secretary on November 9, and it was published in the Federal Register on 
November 9.