OCR Text |
Show I Am An American Day To Be Celebrated May 18 For the third successive year, the people of the United States will celebrate "I Am An American Ameri-can Day", on May 18. The President, Pres-ident, at the request of the Congress, Con-gress, has just issued a proclamation proclama-tion to that effect. As you can realize, "I Am An. American Day" has special significance sig-nificance this year. Probably never in the history of the United States has American citizenship and its implications meant more than it does today. In times like these, when our democracy stands out in strong contrast to governments govern-ments that have subiugated their people, it is important to observe and commemorate the privileges of American citizenship as widely as possible. 'ihe Department of Justice, of which the Immigration and Naturalization Nat-uralization Service is a part, wishes to do everything it cap to encourage observance of "I Am An American Day" in every community. The ceremonies and celebrations will be sponsored by national and local organizations, such as civic clubs, patriotic organizations, or-ganizations, fraternal societies, schools, social agencies, and otn-ler otn-ler interested groups in each community. "I Am An American JJay nas nationwide interest, for it affects iirectly two large groups of new citizens in the United States: those who have been born in the United States and have recently attained the full rights of citizenship citizen-ship by reaching their twenty-first twenty-first birthday; and those wno, having been born in foreign countries, coun-tries, have recently proved their fitness for membership in our Democracy and have been inducted in-ducted into the full rights of citizenship citi-zenship by a naturalization court. These two groups number more than two and a half million people. peo-ple. Actually, "I Am An American Ameri-can Day" affects all of us, for it helps bring home the value and responsibilities of our citizenship and it gives us an opportunity to welcome into our American membership mem-bership those who have become citizens in the past year. By the President of the United States of America A Proclamation WHEREAS Public Resolution No. 67, approved May 3, 1940 (d4 Stat. 178), provides, in part: That the third Sunday in May each year be, and hereby is, set aside as Citizenship Day and tnat the President of the United States is hereby authorized and requested to issue annually a proclamation setting aside that cay as a public occasion for the recognition of all who, by coming com-ing of aee or naturalization, have attained the status of citizenship, and the day shall be designated as "I Am An American Day". That the civil and educational authorities of States, counties, cities and towns be, and they are hereby, urged to make plans for the proper observance of this day and for the full instruction of future fu-ture citizens in their responsibilities responsibil-ities and opportunities as citizens of the United States and of the States and localities in whicn they reside: Now, Therefore, I, Franklin D. Roosevelt, President of the United Uni-ted States of America, do hereby designate Sunday, May 18, 1941, as "I Am An American" Day and urge that this day be observed as a public occasion in recognition recogni-tion of our citizens who have attained at-tained their majority or who have been naturalized within the past year. And I do call upon all Federal, State, and local officials, offic-ials, and all patriotic, civil, and educational organizations to join ;in exercises calculated to impress upon all our citizens, both native-born native-born and naturalized, the special ! significance of citizenship in thia Nation. In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused 1 the seal of the United States of America to be affixed. & Done at the City of Washington this 27th day of March, in tne year of our Lord nineteen hundred hund-red and forty-one, and of the In-dependence In-dependence of the United Stat C of America the one hundred and sixty-fifth. T-(SEAL) T-(SEAL) 1 ? FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT, By the President ' j i-e SUMNER WELLES, n Acting Secretary of State. If 1 . . ,..rr-t |