Proclamation 6106—National Consumers Week, 1990

Two out of every three dollars spent in America's marketplace are spent by individual consumers. These dollars help create jobs and opportunity for men and women across the country. They also contribute to a strong national economy.

The ingenuity of American business in meeting the demands of consumers has helped keep our markets growing and made our lives more comfortable. In our Nation's free enterprise system, we rely on the ability of consumers and private industry to balance each other's needs and interests in the marketplace, with government intervening only to ensure fairness and the safety of goods and services.

Early in this century, when Henry Ford first introduced his "horseless carriage," the automobile, it was wryly noted that buyers could choose between two colors: black and black. Today consumers are able to select their purchases from a wonderful variety of goods and services. And thanks to expanding world trade and the development of new technologies, the number of options available to consumers promises to keep growing.

The theme for this week, "1990: New Consumer Horizons," reflects the broad scope and ever-changing appearance of the marketplace. The marketplace we know extends far beyond the United States. Relationships with trading partners are being strengthened and restructured. New agreements are bringing consumers of this and other nations ever closer together. Our Nation's productivity and technological leadership, complemented by that of other countries, are helping to create a market as diverse as the world is large.

In dramatic new ways, men and women around the world are learning what we Americans have known for more than 200 years: that the people, not government, are the sovereign. As a new breeze sweeps the world, we see that the rights and freedom individuals demand are economic as well as political. The ballot box may be the first place we express our yearning for freedom and opportunity, but it is not the only place.

This year, as we prepare to welcome a new decade of opportunity for consumers, we also recognize the unique challenges it will pose. To be responsible and discerning consumers, Americans will need certain basic skills and a knowledge of the products and services offered to them. Individuals and families should know how to spend wisely, and they should understand the importance of balancing consumer spending and saving and investing for the future. The ability to read labels, to follow written instructions, and to balance a checkbook is essential not only in the marketplace but also in the workplace. Ensuring that all Americans -- especially those young people currently studying in our Nation's schools -- gain such knowledge and skills is a responsibility and challenge shared by parents, educators, business leaders, and public officials.

Now, Therefore, I, George Bush, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim the week beginning April 22, 1990, as National Consumers Week. I urge businesses, educators, community organizations, the media, government, and consumer leaders to conduct activities to emphasize the important role consumers play in keeping our markets open, competitive, and fair. Furthermore, I call upon them to highlight the importance of education in helping citizens to become responsible consumers.

In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this eighth day of March, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and fourteenth.

GEORGE BUSH