Statement About Appointment of Youth Members to the President's Commission for the Observance of the Twenty-fifth Anniversary of the United Nations

THE FUTURE of American youth is directly related to the future of the United Nations. For the U.N. can be a factor in the great issues which will shape history for the rest of their lives: not only the overwhelming issue of war and peace but also issues such as population growth and food production, the use of seabeds and of outer space, the relations between the races and between economic systems.

The President's Commission for the Observance of the Twenty-fifth Anniversary of the United Nations was set up to advise this Government on its role in the U.N.--both in this anniversary year and over the next quarter century. Since young people have more at stake than anyone in the future role of the U.N., it is important that they participate in this Commission. We must take full advantage of the fresh perspectives they bring to public affairs. We must have the full benefit of their idealism and their imagination. For this reason I have today appointed five young men and women to become full participating members of the President's Commission for the Observance of the Twenty-fifth Anniversary of the United Nations. I congratulate them on their appointment and welcome them to this challenging new responsibility.