[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 120 (Thursday, June 23, 1994)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Page 62643]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-15499]
[[Page Unknown]]
[Federal Register: June 23, 1994]
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Part VI
The President
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Proclamation 6703--
50th Anniversary of the GI Bill of Rights
Executive Order 12922--Blocking Property of Certain Haitian Nationals
Presidential Documents
Federal Register
Vol. 59, No. 120
Thursday, June 23, 1994
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Title 3--
The President
Proclamation 6703 of June 21, 1994
50th Anniversary of the GI Bill of Rights
By the President of the United States of America
A Proclamation
Fifty years ago, on June 22, 1944, President Franklin
D. Roosevelt signed into law The Servicemen's
Readjustment Act of 1944--``The GI Bill of Rights''--
described by many historians as America's greatest
single piece of social legislation from that time
period. President Roosevelt said that the passage of
the GI Bill gave ``emphatic notice to the men and women
of our Armed Forces that the American people do not
intend to let them down.''
That promise to meet the needs of a highly trained and
motivated military was well kept by the original GI
Bill and has been renewed and revised with each
succeeding generation of veterans. Today, those
guarantees of assistance--from education to home
purchase, from job training to medical treatment--are
part of every veteran's expectations. They extend
beyond active duty service personnel, to include
reservists and surviving spouses, as well.
The GI Bill has made life better for all Americans. As
it eased the transition of millions of World War II
veterans into civilian life, it paved the way for an
unparalleled period of U.S. economic growth and
development, while reaffirming the vital importance of
our Nation's Armed Forces.
GI Bill home loan provisions underwrote the largest
housing boom in our country's history. Now, most
Americans may reasonably look forward to owning their
own homes at some time during their lives.
GI Bill educational benefits spurred nearly 8 million
World War II veterans on to higher education. It
transformed the Nation's education infrastructure and
made college education and technical training realistic
options after high school for those who may otherwise
not have been able to afford these advantages.
This half-century investment of more than $65 billion
has been repaid to the American taxpayer time and time
again. The Nation has been enhanced by the increased
earning power and expanded economic activity directly
attributable to the GI Bill. It is gratifying to note
that our veterans have utilized these benefits to the
fullest extent. Their energy, initiative, and ability
have allowed them to make the most of this enduring
promise. As they gave their best to the Nation while
they were in uniform, they also gave us their best as
civilians with the help of the GI Bill.
It is to them and to the pioneers who created and
crafted the original GI Bill legislation during the
dark days of World War II, that we as a Nation owe our
heartfelt gratitude this day. This measure opened the
door to the American dream of opportunity for
advancement to an entire generation of young Americans.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, WILLIAM J. CLINTON, President of the
United States of America, by virtue of the authority
vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United
States, do hereby proclaim June 22, 1994, as ``GI Bill
of Rights Day'' celebrating the 50th anniversary of
enactment of the Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944
and the subsequent legislation that has extended its
promise. I encourage all Americans, as well as civic,
veterans, educational, business, and news media
organizations, to join me in honoring this true
American success story and those veterans and
visionaries who made it possible.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
twenty-first day of June, in the year of our Lord
nineteen hundred and ninety-four, and of the
Independence of the United States of America the two
hundred and eighteenth.
(Presidential Sig.)>
[FR Doc. 94-15499
Filed 6-22-94; 11:32 am]
Billing code 3195-01-P