[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 242 (Tuesday, December 19, 2023)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 87653-87654]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-27968]




                        Presidential Documents 



Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 242 / Tuesday, December 19, 2023 / 
Presidential Documents

[[Page 87653]]


                Proclamation 10686 of December 14, 2023

                
Bill of Rights Day, 2023

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                On December 15, 1791, after years of debate and 
                deliberation, our forebearers ratified the Bill of 
                Rights. In doing so, they forever enshrined the 
                fundamental rights and liberties we hold sacred as 
                Americans and set in motion the greatest self-
                governance experiment in the history of the world.

                The freedoms guaranteed by the Bill of Rights--the 
                freedoms of religion, speech, press, assembly, privacy, 
                and more--have helped define who we are as a people and 
                served as our Nation's enduring North Star. The 17 
                additional Amendments that have been ratified since 
                have opened the doors of opportunity wider to each new 
                generation. But time and again we have been reminded 
                that progress is not linear and freedom is never 
                guaranteed; it requires constant vigilance.

                The Supreme Court took away a constitutional right from 
                the American people, denying women across the Nation 
                the right to choose, a right that had been enshrined in 
                a half-century of precedent. In recent years, more than 
                20 States have passed laws that make it harder to vote. 
                A wave of anti-LGBTQI+ bills is threatening Americans' 
                freedom to live openly and authentically. As a Nation, 
                we have a duty to oppose these regressions and defend 
                the values represented in our founding documents.

                As President, I act on that duty every day. In the wake 
                of the Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade, 
                I issued three Executive Orders to protect a woman's 
                ability to access comprehensive reproductive health 
                care services. I continue to call on the Congress to 
                restore the protections of Roe v. Wade in Federal law. 
                Because the right to vote and have your vote counted is 
                the threshold of democracy, I continue to urge the 
                Congress to pass the Freedom to Vote Act and the John 
                Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. These bills would 
                restore and expand access to the ballot and prevent 
                voter suppression. I was also proud to sign the 
                Electoral Count Reform Act, helping preserve the will 
                of the people and protect the peaceful transfer of 
                power. My Administration has made strides in defending 
                the rights and dignity of the LGBTQI+ community. On my 
                first day in office, I signed a historic Executive 
                Order charging the Federal Government with protecting 
                LGBTQI+ people from discrimination. Last December, 
                surrounded by dozens of couples who have fought for 
                marriage equality in the courts for decades, I had the 
                great honor of signing into law the landmark Respect 
                for Marriage Act to protect the rights of same-sex and 
                interracial couples.

                It is worth giving our all for the rights and liberties 
                that undergird our democracy, for they define the soul 
                of our Nation. This cause should unite every one of us, 
                regardless of political affiliation. In the face of 
                threats posed to our institutions, we must remember 
                that democracies do not have to die violently--they can 
                die quietly, when people fail to stand up for the 
                values and guarantees enshrined in our Nation's 
                Constitution. This Bill of Rights Day, let us all 
                recommit to safeguarding the fundamental freedoms 
                secured in those first 10 Amendments and those that 
                followed. In our lives and in the life of our Nation, 
                let us keep marching toward our North Star--making real 
                the promise of dignity, equality, and opportunity for 
                all.

[[Page 87654]]

                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 December 15, 
                2023, as Bill of Rights Day. I call upon the people of 
                the United States to observe this day with appropriate 
                ceremonies and activities.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                fourteenth day of December, in the year of our Lord two 
                thousand twenty-three, and of the Independence of the 
                United States of America the two hundred and forty-
                eighth.
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                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2023-27968
Filed 12-18-23; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3395-F4-P