Proclamation 6795

By the President of the United States of America A Proclamation

Like so many people of this Nation, Americans of Asian and Pacific ancestry enjoy dual heritage-the great cultures of the lands of their forebearers and the rich traditions of liberty and equality cherished by the United States. Bringing new values and customs to these shores, Asian and Pacific Americans have immeasurably enriched the quality and character of this country. In every field of endeavor, in public and private sector alike, they have endowed our Nation with unparalleled energy and vision.

We owe a debt of gratitude to these Americans, both for the gift of their talents and for helping us build bridges of understanding to their ancestral lands in the Pacific Community-bridges that help our economies to grow and that widen the path to peace.

Today, our Nation stands at the dawn of a new era of hope and opportunity. We depend as never before on the active involvement of every one of our people to meet the challenges of our changing world. With the strength of our diversity and a continued commitment to the ideal of freedom, all Americans will share in the blessings of the bright future that awaits us.

To honor the achievements of Asian/Pacific Americans and to recognize their many contributions to our Nation, the Congress, by Public Law 102-450, has designated the month of May as "Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month."

Now, Therefore, I, William J. Clinton, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim May 1995, as Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month. I call upon the people of the United States to observe this occasion with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities.

In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this third day of May, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-five, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and nineteenth.

William J. Clinton

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 2:26 p.m., May 3, 1995]