Presidential Documents

6083 

Federal Register 

Vol. 75, No. 24 

Friday, February 5, 2010 

Title 3— 

The President 

Proclamation 8476 of February 1, 2010 

National African American History Month, 2010 

By the President of the United States of America 

A Proclamation 

In the centuries since African Americans first arrived on our shores, they 

have known the bitterness of slavery and oppression, the hope of progress, 

and the triumph of the American Dream. African American history is an 

essential thread of the American narrative that traces our Nation’s enduring 

struggle to perfect itself. Each February, we recognize African American 

History Month as a moment to reflect upon how far we have come as 

a Nation, and what challenges remain. This year’s theme, ‘‘The History 

of Black Economic Empowerment,’’ calls upon us to honor the African 

Americans who overcame injustice and inequality to achieve financial independence and the security of self empowerment that comes with it. 

Nearly 100 years after the Civil War, African Americans still faced daunting 

challenges and indignities. Widespread racial prejudice inhibited their opportunities, and institutional discrimination such as black codes and Jim Crow 

laws denied them full citizenship rights. Despite these seemingly impossible 

barriers, pioneering African Americans blazed trails for themselves and their 

children. They became skilled workers and professionals. They purchased 

land, and a new generation of black entrepreneurs founded banks, educational 

institutions, newspapers, hospitals, and businesses of all kinds. 

This month, we recognize the courage and tenacity of so many hard-working 

Americans whose legacies are woven into the fabric of our Nation. We 

are heirs to their extraordinary progress. Racial prejudice is no longer the 

steepest barrier to opportunity for most African Americans, yet substantial 

obstacles remain in the remnants of past discrimination. Structural inequalities—from disparities in education and health care to the vicious cycle 

of poverty—still pose enormous hurdles for black communities across America. 

Overcoming today’s challenges will require the same dedication and sense 

of urgency that enabled past generations of African Americans to rise above 

the injustices of their time. That is why my Administration is laying a 

new foundation for long-term economic growth that helps more than just 

a privileged few. We are working hard to give small businesses muchneeded credit, to slash tax breaks for companies that ship jobs overseas, 

and to give those same breaks to companies that create jobs here at home. 

We are also reinvesting in our schools and making college more affordable, 

because a world class education is our country’s best roadmap to prosperity. 

These initiatives will expand opportunities for African Americans, and for 

all Americans, but parents and community leaders must also be partners 

in this effort. We must push our children to reach for the full measure 

of their potential, just as the innovators who succeeded in previous generations pushed their children to achieve something greater. In the volumes 

of black history, much remains unwritten. Let us add our own chapter, 

full of progress and ambition, so that our children’s children will know 

that we, too, did our part to erase an unjust past and build a brighter 

future. 

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6084 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 24 / Friday, February 5, 2010 / Presidential Documents 

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 2010 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 first day of 

February, in the year of our Lord two thousand ten, and of the Independence 

of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-fourth. 

[FR Doc. 2010–2742 

Filed 2–4–10; 11:15 am] 

Billing code 3195–W0–P 


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