[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 32, Number 42 (Monday, October 21, 1996)]
[Pages 2065-2066]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Proclamation 6941--White Cane Safety Day, 1996

October 14, 1996

By the President of the United States

of America

A Proclamation

    In the summer of 1996, the remarkable display of athletic excellence 
at the Tenth Paralympic Games in Atlanta, Georgia, inspired viewers 
around the world. Athletes from across our country, including many who 
are blind or visually impaired, participated in these games. The 
tenacity and commitment to excellence that these athletes showed in 
Atlanta are rich resources for our Nation. From their performance in the 
Paralympics, and indeed from their many contributions throughout our 
Nation's history, blind and visually impaired Americans have 
demonstrated how much they have to contribute.
    Individuals with disabilities, like all people, use many tools in 
their everyday lives, some simple and some technologically 
sophisticated. The tool most commonly used by blind and visually 
impaired people is the white cane. This basic instrument enables them to 
detect obstacles, steps, drop-offs, and changes in surface textures. The 
independence that blind and visually impaired people gain through the 
use of the white cane enriches their lives--and those of all Americans--
by allowing them to participate fully in and contribute generously to 
our society.
    Blind and visually impaired individuals make valuable contributions 
to our society and our economy. But they need more than the white cane 
to achieve their full potential; they also need equal opportunity and 
protection from discrimination. That is why we must continue to 
vigorously enforce the Americans with Disabilities Act, which prohibits 
discrimination against blind and visually impaired people and those with 
other disabilities, and ensures them access to services that all other 
Americans take for granted.

[[Page 2066]]

    To honor the numerous achievements of blind and visually impaired 
individuals, and to recognize the significance of the white cane as a 
symbol of their freedom and independence in our society, the Congress of 
the United States, by joint resolution approved October 6, 1964, has 
designated October 15 of each year as ``White Cane Safety Day,'' and 
authorized the President to issue a proclamation in observance of this 
commemoration.
    Now, Therefore, I, William J. Clinton, President of the United 
States of America, do hereby proclaim October 15, 1996, as White Cane 
Safety Day. I call upon the people of the United States, government 
officials, educators, and business leaders to observe this day with 
appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities.
    In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this fourteenth day 
of October, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-six, and 
of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and 
twenty-first.
                                            William J. Clinton

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 8:45 a.m., October 16, 
1996]

Note: This proclamation was published in the Federal Register on October 
17.