[Title 3 CFR 7201]
[Code of Federal Regulations (annual edition) - January 1, 2000 Edition]
[Title 3 - Presidential Documents]
[Proclamation 7201 - Proclamation 7201 of May 26, 1999]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]
3Presidential Documents12000-01-012000-01-01falseProclamation 7201 of May 26, 19997201Proclamation 7201Presidential Documents
Proclamation 7201 of May 26, 1999
Prayer for Peace, Memorial Day, 1999
By the President of the United States of America
A Proclamation
The challenges to our Nation's peace and freedom are as old as American
history and as new as today's headlines. They have taken many forms
through the years, from the bitter discord of civil war at home to the
ag
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gression of tyrants abroad. But the price of peace and freedom has
always remained the same: the service and sacrifice of our young men and
women in uniform.
Looking back across the decades, we marvel at the valor and
determination of these gallant Americans who, in each generation, have
stepped forward to preserve our freedom, defend our democracy, uphold
our ideals, and protect our interests. The battles in which they fought
and died--Brandywine, Gettysburg, San Juan Hill, Belleau Wood, Coral
Sea, Inchon, Khe Sahn--are a testament to uncommon courage and
indomitable spirit. Those who survived were forever changed. Those who
died stay forever young in their loved ones' memories. Their final
thoughts most likely were of home and family; their final actions
purchased the freedom we enjoy today.
Now, on Memorial Day, our thoughts turn to them. We remember with
profound gratitude those who took to the seas and skies in moments of
peril for our Nation. We remember those who marched through mud or rice
paddies, snow or sand, because they knew, as President Eisenhower
reminded us, that ``a soldier's pack is not so heavy a burden as a
prisoner's chains'' and that true peace is won only by those willing to
die for it. We remember those in the Normandy American Cemetery
overlooking Omaha Beach who, 55 years ago, relit the torch of freedom in
a war-weary Europe. We remember those whose final resting place is
unknown, but whose sacrifice is known to us all. The passing of time and
the blessings of peace and prosperity can never make us forget what
these brave Americans endured and what they lost so that right would
triumph, freedom would survive, and our Nation would prevail.
In honor of all the courageous men and women who gave their lives in
defense of our Nation and our fundamental ideals, I ask that every
American say a prayer for lasting peace on this Memorial Day. I ask that
every American remember our heroic war dead in some special way, whether
by placing flowers on a veteran's grave, lighting a candle, observing a
moment of silence, or saying a prayer of thanks. While we can never
fully repay our debt to America's fallen warriors, we can remember their
service and honor their sacrifice.
In respect and recognition of the courageous men and women to whom we
pay tribute, the Congress, by joint resolution approved on May 11, 1950
(64 Stat. 158), has requested the President to issue a proclamation
calling upon the people of the United States to observe each Memorial
Day as a day of prayer for permanent peace and designating a period on
that day when the American people might unite in prayer.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, WILLIAM J. CLINTON, President of the United States of
America, do hereby proclaim Memorial Day, May 31, 1999, as a day of
prayer for permanent peace, and I designate the hour beginning at 3:00
p.m. EDT of that day as a time to join in prayer. I urge the press,
radio, television, and all other information media to take part in this
observance.
I also request the Governors of the United States and the Commonwealth
of Puerto Rico, and the appropriate officials of all units of
government, to direct that the flag be flown at half-staff until noon on
this Memorial Day on all buildings, grounds, and naval vessels
throughout the United States and in all areas under its jurisdiction and
control, and I request the people
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of the United States to display the flag at half-staff from their homes
for the customary forenoon period.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-sixth day of
May, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-nine, and of
the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and
twenty-third.
WILLIAM J. CLINTON