Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 123.djvu/3720

 123STA T . 3 70 0 PROCL A M AT I O N84 1 9— S E PT. 17 , 2009 temb e r17and end i n gS e p tember 23of ea chy ear a s‘ ‘ C onstit u tion W ee k.’ ’ NO W ,THER E F ORE, I , BA RAC K OBA M A, P resident of the U nited States of America, do hereby proc l aim September 17, 2 0 0 9 ,asCon - stitution D ay and Citi z enship Day, and September 17 through Sep- tember 23, 2009, as Constitution Week. I encourage Federal, State, and local officials, as w ell as leaders of ci v ic, social, and educational orga- nizations, to conduct ceremonies and programs that celebrate our Con- stitution and reaffirm our rights and obligations as citizens of our great Nation. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this si x teenth day of September, in the year of our L ord two thousand nine, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-fourth. BARACK OBAMA Proclam a ti o n8419 o fSep tem b er1 7,20 09 Nation a lPOW/MIARec o g nition D a y,20 0 9BythePr e sid e n t of the U nited S t a tes of Am eri c a A Proc l amation Our Nation maintains a solemn commitment to leave no service mem- ber behind. Our men and women in uniform uphold this pledge every day, and our country further upholds it as we honor every man and woman who serves, particularly those taken as prisoners of war or missing in action. We will never cease in our mission to bring Amer- ica’s missing service members home we will never forget the sacrifices they made to keep this Nation free; and we will forever honor their memory. On National POW / MIA Recognition Day, we pay tribute to the American men and women who have not returned from the battle- field, and we express profound gratitude to those who returned only after facing unimaginable hardship on our behalf. Today, we also re- member the families of our prisoners of war and those missing in ac- tion and honor the sacrifices they have made. Every day, Americans are working around the world to identify and re- cover the remains of our fallen heroes. It is a promise made, and a promise that will be kept. Although their location may be unknown, we will not waver in our commitment to see they are reunited with the land they so valiantly defended. For those veterans who returned home after being declared Missing in Action or having been imprisoned by the enemy, we honor their serv- ice, their sacrifice, and their courage. In distant lands, and under wretched and torturous conditions, these men and women endured. Faced with such tremendous adversity, they embody the power of the human spirit — sustaining themselves with hope and faith. On September 1 8, 2009, the stark black and white banner symbolizing America’s Missing in Action and Prisoners of War will be flown over the White House, the Capitol, the Departments of State, Defense, and V eterans Affairs, the Selective Service System Head q uarters, the World