[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 214 (Tuesday, November 5, 2019)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 59705-59706]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-24281]
Presidential Documents
Federal Register / Vol. 84 , No. 214 / Tuesday, November 5, 2019 /
Presidential Documents
[[Page 59705]]
Proclamation 9961 of October 31, 2019
National Native American Heritage Month, 2019
By the President of the United States of America
A Proclamation
American Indians and Alaska Natives continue to make
immeasurable contributions to our Nation. We honor the
sacrifices many tribal citizens have made in defense of
our great Nation. We also recognize that our culture is
more vibrant because of the special government-to-
government relationship between the United States and
Indian tribes. During National Native American Heritage
Month, we reaffirm our commitment to work with tribal
communities to address serious issues affecting them
and to help protect their rich and diverse heritage.
Few acts of service better embody the intrepid spirit
of our country than the willingness to answer the call
of duty and defend our Nation's precious liberties.
American Indians and Alaska Natives have done so at one
of the highest rates of any ethnic group in the United
States, serving admirably in every branch of our
military. Their legacy of service spans the history of
our Nation, and includes the Indian Home Guard during
the Civil War and the Code Talkers during World War II.
Today, 31,000 courageous men and women from American
Indian and Alaska Native communities serve on active
duty in our Armed Forces.
My Administration is committed to advancing shared
priorities with tribal governments and leaders to
address their most pressing challenges, including the
devastating threat posed by drugs. In 2018, the
Department of Interior's Opioid Reduction Task Force
seized more than 3,200 pounds of illegal narcotics with
an estimated value of approximately $9 million. In
addition to our efforts to address the drug crisis, we
are focused on healthcare access, delivery, and safety.
In March 2019, my Administration created a task force
charged with developing recommendations to protect
Native American children receiving care at Indian
Health Service clinics, and we look forward to
continuing these efforts.
Additionally, my Administration began a series of
public safety listening sessions with American Indian
and Alaska Native tribal leaders and communities. These
sessions, which are called Reclaiming our Native
Communities, are focused on strategies to address the
trend of violence and illicit activity affecting these
populations and have addressed the problem of missing
and murdered indigenous women. So far, these sessions
have been held in Sacaton, Arizona; Nome and Bethel,
Alaska; and Rapid City, South Dakota. Through
collaboration with Federal, State, local, and tribal
partners, we will continue working to address these and
other issues that American Indian and Alaska Native
communities face today.
My Administration has also played a role in helping to
preserve the proud heritage of American Indians and
Alaska Natives. In October, my Administration was
pleased to secure the commitment of President Sauli
Niinisto of Finland to facilitate the historic return
of ancestral remains and artifacts to an assembly of 26
pueblos and tribes in the Mesa Verde region. More than
600 items of cultural patrimony will be returned to
this region, which includes areas of Utah, Colorado,
and New Mexico.
[[Page 59706]]
During National Native American Heritage Month, we
affirm our commitment to working toward a society that
fosters a deeper understanding and appreciation for the
diversity of culture and history of the 573 federally
recognized American Indian and Alaska Native nations in
our country. This November and every month, we
celebrate the culture and heritage of these remarkable
Americans who deeply enrich the quality and character
of our Nation.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, 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 November 2019 as
National Native American Heritage Month. I call upon
all Americans to commemorate this month with
appropriate programs and activities and to celebrate
November 29, 2019, as Native American Heritage Day.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
thirty-first day of October, in the year of our Lord
two thousand nineteen, and of the Independence of the
United States of America the two hundred and forty-
fourth.
(Presidential Sig.)
[FR Doc. 2019-24281
Filed 11-4-19; 11:15 am]
Billing code 3295-F0-P