'Since we are currently celebrating Black History Month, I thought
that it would be very appropriate to post my poem "Shades of Lovey" ,
which acknowledges and celebrates the unique beauty of black women in
its broad spectrum of colors.' PND.
Presidential Proclamation:
National African American History Month, 2013
By The President of The United States of America
A Proclamation
In America, we share
a dream that lies at the heart of our founding: that no matter who
you are, no matter what you look like, no matter how modest your
beginnings or the circumstances of your birth, you can make it if you
try. Yet, for many and for much of our Nation's history, that dream
has gone unfulfilled.
For African Americans, it was a dream denied until 150 years ago, when a
great emancipator called for the end of slavery. It was a dream
deferred less than 50 years ago, when a preacher spoke of justice and
brotherhood from Lincoln's memorial. This dream of equality and
fairness has never come easily -- but it has always been sustained by
the belief that in America, change is possible.
Today, because of that hope, coupled with the hard and painstaking
labor of Americans sung and unsung, we live in a moment when the dream
of equal opportunity is within reach for people of every color and
creed. National African American History Month is a time to tell those
stories of freedom won and honor the individuals who wrote them. We
look back to the men and women who helped raise the pillars of
democracy, even when the halls they built were not theirs to occupy. We
trace generations of African Americans, free and slave, who risked
everything to realize their God-given rights. We listen to the echoes
of speeches and struggle that made our Nation stronger, and we hear
again the thousands who sat in, stood up, and called out for equal
treatment under the law. And we see yesterday's visionaries in
tomorrow's leaders, reminding us that while we have yet to reach the
mountaintop, we cannot stop climbing.
Today, Dr. King, President Lincoln, and other shapers of our American
story proudly watch over our National Mall. But as we memorialize
their extraordinary acts in statues and stone, let us not lose sight of
the enduring truth that they were citizens first. They spoke and
marched and toiled and bled shoulder-to-shoulder with ordinary people
who burned with the same hope for a brighter day. That legacy is
shared; that spirit is American. And just as it guided us forward 150
years ago and 50 years ago, it guides us forward today. So let us honor
those who came before by striving toward their example, and let us
follow in their footsteps toward the better future that is ours to
claim.
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 2013 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 programs, ceremonies, and
activities.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirty-first day
of January, in the year of our Lord two thousand thirteen, and of the
Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and
thirty-seventh.
BARACK OBAMA
(The White House Office of the Press Secretary For Immediate Release January 31, 2013)
