[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 43, Number 2 (Monday, January 15, 2007)]
[Pages 30-31]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Proclamation 8099--Martin Luther King, Jr., Federal Holiday, 2007

January 11, 2007

By the President of the United States

of America

A Proclamation

    On the Martin Luther King, Jr., Federal Holiday, Americans honor the 
memory of a man who stirred the conscience of a Nation. We also recommit 
ourselves to the dream to which Dr. King devoted his life--an America 
where the dignity of every person is respected; where people are judged 
not by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character; 
and where the hope of a better tomorrow is in every neighborhood.
    When Martin Luther King, Jr., came to our Nation's Capital in the 
summer of 1963, he came to inspire America and to call on our citizens 
to live up to the principles of our founding. His dream spread a message 
of hope, justice, and brotherhood that took hold in the hearts of men 
and women across our great land, and it continues to speak to millions 
here at home and around the world.
    We honor Martin Luther King, Jr., and remember his strength of 
character and his leadership. We also remember the work that still 
remains. America has come a long way since Dr. King's time, yet our 
journey to justice is not complete. There is still a need for all 
Americans to hear the power and hope of Dr. King's enduring words so 
that we can hasten the day when his dream is made real. Last year, I was 
proud to sign the ``Fannie Lou Hamer, Rosa Parks, and Coretta Scott King 
Voting Rights Act Reauthorization and Amendments Act of 2006.'' This Act 
renewed the 1965 bill that reaffirmed our belief that all men are 
created equal, broke the segregationist lock on the ballot box, and 
helped bring an excluded community into the center of American 
democracy. Our Nation will continue to build on the legal equality 
championed by Dr. King and all the heroes of the civil rights movement, 
and we will continue our work to protect the promise of our Declaration 
and guarantee the rights of every citizen.

[[Page 31]]

    As we observe Dr. King's birthday, let us honor his legacy and go 
forward with confidence as a Nation united, committed to destroying 
discrimination, and dedicated to extending the full blessings of liberty 
and opportunity to all Americans.
    Now, Therefore, I, George W. Bush, President of the United States of 
America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and 
laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim Monday, January 15, 2007, 
as the Martin Luther King, Jr., Federal Holiday. I encourage all 
Americans to observe this special day with appropriate civic, community, 
and service programs and activities in honor of Dr. King's life and 
legacy.
    In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this eleventh day of 
January, in the year of our Lord two thousand seven, and of the 
Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-
first.
                                                George W. Bush

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 11:33 a.m., January 12, 
2007]

Note: This proclamation will be published in the Federal Register on 
January 16.