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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 239 (Thursday, December 12, 2024)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 100299-100300]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-29460]



                        Presidential Documents 



Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 239 / Thursday, December 12, 2024 / 
Presidential Documents

[[Page 100299]]

                Proclamation 10871 of December 9, 2024

                
Human Rights Day and Human Rights Week, 2024

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                On Human Rights Day and during Human Rights Week, we 
                recommit to upholding the equal and inalienable rights 
                of all people.

                America was founded on an idea--that every person is 
                created equal and deserves to be treated equally 
                throughout their lives. And 76 years ago today, after 
                the wreckage of 2 world wars and the Holocaust, the 
                United States joined countries around the globe to 
                enshrine this idea into a Universal Declaration of 
                Human Rights. We also helped establish the United 
                Nations, upholding the inherent dignity of every person 
                on the world stage and establishing a rules-based 
                international order. Today, our country continues to 
                stand with our partners and allies to defend human 
                rights and fundamental freedoms around the world--from 
                combatting threats to silence and intimidate human 
                rights defenders like journalists to championing 
                democracy, fair elections, and the universal human 
                rights to freedoms of association, peaceful assembly, 
                religion, and expression. When crises erupt, we protect 
                civilians from mass atrocities, promote accountability 
                for those responsible for human rights violations and 
                abuses, seek to free political prisoners, and create 
                space for civilian dialogue. This year, we also 
                recognize another landmark achievement in the global 
                fight for human rights with the 40th anniversary of the 
                adoption of the Convention Against Torture and Other 
                Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. 
                And we continue to stand with free people everywhere 
                who are bravely fighting for justice and defending life 
                and liberty at home and around the world.

                My Administration has been committed to protecting the 
                dignity and rights of people here at home and around 
                the globe. We established the White House Gender Policy 
                Council to advance the rights and opportunities of 
                women and girls across domestic and foreign policy--
                from preventing and responding to gender-based violence 
                to promoting participation in peace and security 
                efforts. We rejoined the United Nations Human Rights 
                Council to highlight and address pressing human rights 
                concerns. From the beginning of my Administration, we 
                have worked to protect the rights of LGBTQI+ people, 
                working toward a future where no one is targeted or 
                persecuted because of who they are. We are working to 
                ensure all people are treated equally and have equal 
                access to opportunities, no matter who they are or 
                where they come from. We have made progress in bringing 
                new investments to communities that have too often been 
                left behind and in expanding accessibility for people 
                with disabilities. And we have worked to advance 
                technology in support of democracy and internet 
                freedom, while leading important efforts to stop the 
                expansion and misuse of commercial spyware, which has 
                enabled human rights abuses around the world.

                I have made the preservation of democracy--the best 
                tool for protecting human rights--the central cause of 
                my Presidency. That is why we convened the Summit for 
                Democracy to strengthen democratic institutions, root 
                out corruption, promote gender equality and human 
                rights, and reject political violence. There will 
                always be forces that pull the world apart: aggression, 
                extremism, chaos, cynicism, and a desire to retreat 
                from the world and go it alone. The task of our time is 
                to ensure that the forces holding

[[Page 100300]]

                us together are stronger than those that are pulling us 
                apart. Together, we can make sure our shared values and 
                determination withstand any challenge.

                Today and this week, may we reaffirm our commitment to 
                standing up for human rights at home and around the 
                world. The future will be won by those who unleash the 
                full potential of their people to live with dignity, 
                prosper, think freely, innovate, and exist and love 
                openly without fear. Together, nothing is beyond our 
                capacity.

                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 10, 
                2024, as Human Rights Day and the week beginning 
                December 10, 2024, as Human Rights Week. I call upon 
                the people of the United States to mark these 
                observances with appropriate ceremonies and activities.

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

[FR Doc. 2024-29460
Filed 12-11-24; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3395-F4-P
```