Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 78.djvu/1287

 78 STAT. ]

PROCLAMATION 3593-MAY 28, 1964

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Proclamation 3593 FLAG DAY, 1964 By the President of the United States of America

May 28, 1964

A Proclamation

Born at a time of peril to our fledgling Nation, our fla^ rallied our forefathers in their struggle for liberty—its stars and stripes symbolizing their highest aspirations and ideals as a people and as a nation. Out of their diverse backgrounds they joined as one under its protecting folds to establish a new nation where all men are equal and each is endowed with certain unalienable rights among which are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Throughout our history we, as a nation, have continued this struggle to maintain our independence and to renew our efforts to become one people despite the differences in our heritages, creeds, and races. These same aspirations and ideals, symbolized by our flag, inspire peoples around the world. Flying alongside the flags of our allies, the Stars and Stripes presents visible evidence of our commitment to the defense of liberty for all free peoples. To the oppressed it stands as a beacon of hope. The importance which our flag holds in our national life prompted the Congress to adopt a resolution on August 3, 1949 (63 Stat. 492), 36 USC 157. designating June 14 of each year as Flag Day, to commemorate the adoption of our national emblem by the Continental Congress on that day in 1777, and requesting the President to issue annually a proclamation calling for its observance. NOW, THEREFORE, I, LYNDON B. JOHNSON, President of the United States of America, do hereby direct that the flag of the United States be displayed on all Government buildings on Sunday, June 14, 1964, and I call upon all Americans to observe Flag Day with suitable ceremonies. I also urge each and every one to meditate that day on the meaning that our flag held for our forefathers and what it means to us today, and to that end to rededicate ourselves to the principles which our flag symbolizes—equality, justice, and liberty for all peoples whatever their race, color, or creed—principles which have made ours a great and respected nation. I N W I T N E S S WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Seal of the United States of America to be affixed. D O N E at the City of Washington this twenty-eighth day of May in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and sixty-four, and [SEAL] of the Independence of the United States of America the one hundred and eighty-eighth. LYNDON B. JOHNSON

By the President: GEORGE W. BALL,

Acting Secretary of State.

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