[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 44, Number 13 (Monday, April 7, 2008)]
[Page 461]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Proclamation 8232--National Fair Housing Month, 2008

 April 1, 2008

 By the President of the United States

 of America

 A Proclamation

    During National Fair Housing Month, our Nation commemorates the 40th 
anniversary of the Fair Housing Act and reaffirms our dedication to 
maintaining equal access to housing for every American.
    On April 11, 1968, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Fair 
Housing Act. This important legislation was one of a series of civil 
rights laws that sought to secure the rights of individuals and extend 
the full blessings of liberty to all Americans. The Fair Housing Act 
prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental, and financing of housing 
and, in doing so, furthers the ideals championed by Dr. Martin Luther 
King, Jr., and other heroes of the civil rights movement.
    Our Nation has come a long way, yet our journey to justice is not 
complete. While the housing market works through this difficult period, 
my Administration remains steadfast in its commitment to help 
responsible homeowners, to end discrimination, and to work to ensure 
that all citizens have access to housing. During National Fair Housing 
Month, we acknowledge our responsibility to ensure that all Americans 
enjoy the opportunities that this great land of liberty offers.
    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 April 2008 as National 
Fair Housing Month. I call upon the people of the United States to learn 
more about their rights and responsibilities under the Fair Housing Act.
    In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this first day of 
April, in the year of our Lord two thousand eight, and of the 
Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-
second.
                                                George W. Bush

 [Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 9:03 a.m., April 2, 
2008]

Note: This proclamation was published in the Federal Register on April 
3.