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BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
A PROCLAMATION
The history of African Americans is unique and rich, and one that has helped
to define what it means to be an American. Arriving on ships on the shores
of North America more than 300 years ago, recognized more as possessions than
people, African Americans have come to know the freedoms fought for in
establishing the United States and gained through the use of our founding
principles of freedom of speech, freedom of the press, the right to assembly, and due
process of law. The ideals of the Founders became more real and more true for
every citizen as African Americans pressed us to realize our full potential
as a Nation and to uphold those ideals for all who enter into our borders and
embrace the notion that we are all endowed with certain unalienable rights.
Since Carter G. Woodson first sought to illuminate the African American
experience, each February we pause to reflect on the contributions of this
community to our national identity. The history is one of struggle for the
recognition of each person's humanity as well as an influence on the broader American
culture. African Americans designed our beautiful Capital City , gave us the
melodic rhythms of New Orleans Jazz, issued new discoveries in science and
medicine, and forced us to examine ourselves in the pages of classic
literature. This legacy has only added luster to the brand of the United States ,
which has drawn immigrants to our shores for centuries.
This year's theme, "The Quest for Black Citizenship in the Americas ," is a
chance to examine the evolution of our country and how African Americans
helped draw us ever closer to becoming a more perfect union.
The narrative of the African American pursuit of full citizenship with all
of the rights and privileges afforded others in this country is also the story
of a maturing young Nation. The voices and examples of the African American
people worked collectively to remove the boulders of systemic racism and
discrimination that pervaded our laws and our public consciousness for decades.
Through the work of Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman, Booker T.
Washington and George Washington Carver, Martin Luther King and Thurgood Marshall, the
African American community has steadily made progress toward the dreams
within its grasp and the promise of our Nation. Meanwhile, the belief that those
dreams might one day be realized by all of our citizens gave African American
men and women the same sense of duty and love of country that led them to
shed blood in every war we have ever fought, to invest hard-earned resources in
their communities with the hope of self empowerment, and to pass the ideals
of this great land down to their children and grandchildren.
As we mark National African American History Month, we should take note of
this special moment in our Nation's history and the actors who worked so
diligently to deliver us to this place. One such organization is the National
Association for the Advancement of Colored People -- the NAACP -- which this year
will witness 100 years of service to the Nation on February 12. Because of
their work, including the contributions of those luminaries on the front lines
and great advocates behind the scenes, we as a Nation were able to take the
dramatic steps we have in recent history.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America ,
by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of
the United States , do hereby proclaim February 2009 as National African
American History Month. I call upon public officials, educators, librarians, and
all the people of the United States to observe this month with appropriate
ceremonies, activities, and programs that raise awareness and appreciation of
African American history.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
second day of February, in the year of our Lord two thousand nine, and of
the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and
thirty-third.
BARACK OBAMA

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