Proclamation 3997—National Hispanic Heritage Week, 1970

For more than two centuries Americans have taken great pride in the contributions which men and women of Hispanic origin have made to the development of the United States.

The careful work of early Spanish explorers, teachers, and agriculturalists built a solid and graceful foundation for progress in many parts of our country, and their legacy is one of gentility and art. The striking churches and homes they built long ago are monuments to their vision; the lovely Hispanic names they gave to the lands they explored and tilled are epitaphs of their taste. More recent generations have helped to give new dimensions and fresh vitality to our music, our literature, and our food, and have brought a particular warmth and openness to our spiritual values and to our style of living.

In recognition of these gifts to our national life, the Congress requested in 1968 that the President designate a week to include September 15 and 16 as National Hispanic Heritage Week.

Now, Therefore, I, Richard Nixon, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim the week beginning September 13, 1970, as National Hispanic Heritage Week. I call upon all Americans, particularly those in the field of education, to observe that week with appropriate ceremonies and activities, and I hope that the week will encourage many Americans to extend a cordial welcome to the recently arrived immigrants and visitors among us who represent the rich heritage of Hispanic lands.

In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this 24th day of August, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred seventy, and of the Independence of the United States of America the one hundred ninety-fifth.

RICHARD NIXON