Proclamation 5720

By the President of the United States of America A Proclamation

During October the people of the United States recognize and rejoice in the many accomplishments of generations of Polish Americans. From the founding of our Republic to the present day, Poles have enriched, strengthened, and defended our Nation. Millions of Polish Americans have attained great success in the arts, sciences, scholarship, and every other field of endeavor, but perhaps their most special gifts to America have been the faith and love of liberty Poles have cherished through the centuries.

That Polish love of liberty manifested itself in the hard, early days of the American Revolution when Polish freedom fighters such as Kosciuszko and Pulaski stood with us for independence. They knew the profound truth that freedom's cause is universal, that in struggling for our freedom they were working for Poland's freedom and for all mankind's. They knew that once America had fired "the shot heard 'round the world" no tyrant could ever again rest easy.

Today, as always, Americans stand in solidarity with the continuing Polish struggle for political, religious, and economic liberty. By advocating these precious freedoms so eloquently and forthrightly, His Holiness John Paul II and Lech Walesa have come to symbolize hope, justice, and human dignity to all Americans and to countless millions around the world. Their idealism, self-sacrifice, and devotion inspire us as we express our thanks to Polish Americans and our pride in our country's Polish heritage.

The Congress, by Senate Joint Resolution 135, has designated the month of October 1987 as "Polish American Heritage Month" and authorized and requested the President to issue a proclamation in observance of this event.

Now, Therefore, I, Ronald Reagan, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim October 1987 as Polish American Heritage Month. I urge all Americans to join their fellow citizens of Polish descent in observance of this month.

In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this fifth day of October, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and eighty-seven, and of the Independence of the United States of America and two hundred and twelfth.

RONALD REAGAN

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 4:36 p.m., October 5, 1987]