[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 72 (Wednesday, April 15, 2015)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 20405-20406]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-08829]




                        Presidential Documents 



Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 72 / Wednesday, April 15, 2015 / 
Presidential Documents

[[Page 20405]]


                Proclamation 9254 of April 10, 2015

                
Pan American Day and Pan American Week, 2015

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                One hundred and twenty-five years ago, delegates from 
                countries throughout the Western Hemisphere came 
                together to establish the International Union of 
                American Republics, the forerunner to what is today the 
                oldest regional international organization in the 
                world: the Organization of American States. In the 
                years since, our nations have collaborated to address 
                regional challenges and improve the lives of people 
                across the Americas. On Pan American Day and during Pan 
                American Week, we reaffirm our hemisphere's enduring 
                friendship, and we recommit to working as equal 
                partners to support robust civil societies and expand 
                opportunity.

                The United States and our regional neighbors are bound 
                by our mutual desire for peace and stability, and the 
                common yearning of all our peoples--to build a better 
                life for themselves and their families. We share 
                vibrant people-to-people connections and extensive 
                economic links. These ties are vital to our security 
                and prosperity, and when we work together to strengthen 
                them, we help ensure a brighter future for the next 
                generation.

                My Administration is dedicated to joining with our Pan 
                American partners to promote and protect human rights, 
                open markets, expand fair trade, and advance the values 
                of democracy and freedom. Last December, we began a new 
                chapter in this commitment. In the most significant 
                changes to our policy in more than 50 years, the United 
                States is beginning to normalize our relations with 
                Cuba. As we extend a hand of friendship to the Cuban 
                people, we have the potential to lift up a nation and 
                end a legacy of mistrust in our hemisphere.

                We continue to expand trade among the nations of the 
                Americas because we know when we allow businesses to 
                grow their markets it extends opportunity to a wider 
                circle of people. We are fostering small business 
                connections throughout the Americas and bolstering 
                women-owned and managed enterprises. Through the 
                100,000 Strong in the Americas initiative, the United 
                States is striving to increase educational exchanges 
                that open doors to new markets, innovative research, 
                and region-wide prosperity. And as our nations face 
                common energy and environmental concerns, my 
                Administration is working with leaders and experts from 
                the region to ensure every person in the Western 
                Hemisphere will have access to the electricity they 
                need at a price they can afford--in a manner that is 
                socially responsible and environmentally beneficial.

                As we head into this week, I will attend the Summit of 
                the Americas in Panama. As leaders from across the Pan 
                American community come together, we will continue our 
                work to address the shared challenges our countries 
                face today. When our people--our leaders, our civil 
                society members, and all the sons and daughters of the 
                Americas--join in a spirit of mutual interest and 
                mutual respect, we can build a future of greater peace, 
                security, and possibility for every person who calls 
                the Americas home.

                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 April 14, 2015,

[[Page 20406]]

                as Pan American Day and April 12 through April 18, 
                2015, as Pan American Week. I urge the Governors of the 
                50 States, the Governor of the Commonwealth of Puerto 
                Rico, and the officials of the other areas under the 
                flag of the United States of America to honor these 
                observances with appropriate ceremonies and activities.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                tenth day of April, in the year of our Lord two 
                thousand fifteen, and of the Independence of the United 
                States of America the two hundred and thirty-ninth.
                <GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2015-08829
Filed 4-14-15; 11:15 am]
Billing code 3295-F5