Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 107 Part 3.djvu/711

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PROCLAMATION 6553—APR. 30, 1993 107 STAT. 2649 though his formal education ended after the seventh grade, Cesar learned much from the courageous example of his parents. Often among the first to resist exploitation and to stand up to injustice, they instilled in Cesar a profound respect for the intrinsic value of each human person, and a fervent desire to protect that value. Inspired by the teachings of a Catholic priest and by the writings of Ghandi and other great civil leaders, Cesar rose to become one of the great labor leaders of our time. The United Farm Workers, the imion he founded and led for almost three decades, became a symbol of empowerment and pride for many workers. Cesar's innate understanding of the problems facing migrant workers allowed him to organize thousands of farm workers across the Nation. With natural leadership and imflagging determination, he achieved real progress where others had failed. His insistence on nonviolent tactics stood in stark contrast to the bitterness and brutality that were used in resistance. The strength of his vision and the power of his leadership enabled him to take his struggle directly to the American people. He focused our Nation's attention on the economic and social plight of migrant farm workers and, in the process, taught us how injustice anywhere affects us everywhere. NOW, THEREFORE, I, WILLIAM J. CLINTON, President of the United States of America, by the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, in tribute to the memory of Cesar Chavez, do hereby call upon the citizens of this great Nation to reflect on and honor the life of this distinguished leader, veteran, and American. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereimto set my hand this twenty- eighth day of April, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-three, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and seventeenth. WILLIAM J. CLINTON Proclamation 6553 of April 30, 1993 National Day of Prayer, 1993 By the President of the United States of America A Proclamation The American people were the first to define a nation in terms of both spirituality and human liberty. Throughout our Nation's history, America has been a beacon for millions in search of spiritual and religious freedom. Immigrants have come to the United States seeking not just freedom from persecution and discrimination, but also freedom for the right of self-determination. On this National Day of Prayer, we reaffirm this fundamental freedom of religion that has made our Nation so strong. Thomas Jefferson understood the greater purpose of the liberty that our Founding Fathers sought diuing the creation of our Nation. Although it was against the British that the colonists fought for political rights, the true soiurce of the rights of man was clearly stated in the Declara-