Presidential Document2023-09523
Jewish American Heritage Month, 2023
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
May 3, 2023
Signed
April 28, 2023
Issuing agencies
Executive Office of the President
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 85 (Wednesday, May 3, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 85 (Wednesday, May 3, 2023)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 27657-27659]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-09523]
Presidential Documents
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 85 / Wednesday, May 3, 2023 /
Presidential Documents
[[Page 27657]]
Proclamation 10560 of April 28, 2023
Jewish American Heritage Month, 2023
By the President of the United States of America
A Proclamation
This month, we celebrate the enduring heritage of
Jewish Americans, whose values, culture, and
contributions have shaped our character as a Nation.
For generations, the story of the Jewish people--one of
resilience, faith, and hope in the face of adversity,
prejudice and persecution--has been woven into the
fabric of our Nation's story. It has driven us forward
in our ongoing march for justice, equality, and freedom
as we recommit to upholding the principles of our
Nation's founding and realizing the promise of America
for all Americans.
For centuries, Jewish refugees fleeing oppression and
discrimination abroad have sailed to our shores in
search of sanctuary. Early on, they fought for
religious freedom, helping define one of the bedrock
principles upon which America was built. Union soldiers
celebrated Passover in the midst of the Civil War.
Jewish suffragists fought to expand freedom and
justice. And Jewish faith leaders linked arms with
giants of the Civil Rights Movement to demand equal
rights for all.
Jewish Americans continue to enrich every part of
American life as educators and entrepreneurs, athletes
and artists, scientists and entertainers, public
officials and activists, labor and community leaders,
diplomats and military service members, public health
heroes, and more. Last year, I was proud to host the
White House's first-ever Jewish New Year reception.
During our Hanukkah celebration, I was also proud to
unveil the first-ever permanent menorah at the White
House--reinforcing the permanency of Jewish culture in
America. In my own life, the Jewish community has been
a tremendous source of friendship, guidance, and
strength through seasons of pain and seasons of joy.
But there is also a dark side to the celebrated history
of the Jewish people--a history marked by genocide,
pogrom, and persecution--with a through line that
continues in the record rise of antisemitism today. We
have witnessed violent attacks on synagogues, bricks
thrown through windows of Jewish businesses, swastikas
defacing cars and cemeteries, Jewish students harassed
on college campuses, and Jews wearing religious attire
beaten and shot on streets. Antisemitic conspiracy
theories are rampant online, and celebrities are
spouting antisemitic hate.
[[Page 27658]]
These acts are unconscionable and despicable. They
carry with them terrifying echoes of the worst chapters
in human history. Not only are they a strike against
Jews, but they are also a threat to other minority
communities and a stain on the soul of our Nation. I
decided to run for President after I saw this hatred on
display during the rally in Charlottesville, when neo-
Nazis marched from the shadows spewing the same
antisemitic bile that was heard in Germany in the
1930s. These incidents remind us that hate never truly
goes away--it only hides until it is given just a
little oxygen. It is our obligation to ensure that hate
can have no safe harbor in America and to protect the
sacred ideals enshrined in our Constitution: religious
freedom, equality, dignity, and respect. That is the
promise of America.
I have made clear that I will not remain silent in the
face of this antisemitic venom, vitriol, and violence.
During my first year in office, I signed the bipartisan
COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act to help State and local law
enforcement better identify and respond to hate crimes.
I appointed Deborah Lipstadt, a historian of the
Holocaust, as the first Ambassador-level Special Envoy
to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism. And my
Administration also secured the largest increase in
funding ever for the physical security of nonprofits,
including synagogues, Jewish Community Centers, and
Jewish day schools.
At my direction, we are also developing the first
national strategy to counter antisemitism that outlines
comprehensive actions the Federal Government will
undertake and that reflects input from over a thousand
Jewish community stakeholders, faith and civil rights
leaders, State and local officials, and more. This
strategy will help combat antisemitism online and
offline, including in schools and on campuses; improve
security to prevent antisemitic incidents and attacks;
and build cross-community solidarity against
antisemitism and other forms of hate.
But governance alone cannot root out antisemitism and
hate. All Americans--including business and community
leaders, educators, students, athletes, entertainers,
and influencers--must help confront bigotry in all its
forms. We must each do our part to put an end to
antisemitism and hatred and create a culture of respect
in our workplaces, schools, and homes and across social
media.
This Jewish American Heritage Month, let us join hands
across faiths, races, and backgrounds to make clear
that evil, hate, and antisemitism will not prevail. Let
us honor the timeless values, contributions, and
culture of Jewish Americans, who carry our Nation
forward each and every day. And let us rededicate
ourselves to the sacred work of creating a more
inclusive tomorrow, protecting the diversity that
defines who we are as a Nation, and preserving the
dignity of every human being--here at home and around
the world.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., 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 May 2023 as
Jewish American Heritage Month. I call upon all
Americans to learn more about the heritage and
contributions of Jewish Americans and to observe this
month with appropriate programs, activities, and
ceremonies.
[[Page 27659]]
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
twenty-eighth day of April, in the year two thousand
twenty-three, and of the Independence of the United
States of America the two hundred and forty-seventh.
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
(Presidential Sig.)
[FR Doc. 2023-09523
Filed 5-2-23; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3395-F3-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on May 3, 2023.
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