50 years after the assassination of JFK Obama issues a proclamation making it an official day
John F Kennedy was fatally assassinated 50 years ago on this day. President Obama has declared this day as a day of remembrance for the slain president by asking that flags be hung at half-staff. Thousands are also set to gather at Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas which is where JFK lost his life on that fateful day. A moment of silence will be held at the ceremony at 12:30 p.m., the time the President was shot.
A lot of events were held around Dallas this year because of this special anniversary including events featuring people who were there on the day of the assassination and museum exhibits.
During a proclamation, President Obama reflected on the amazing legacy that John F Kennedy leaves behind. “With broad vision and soaring but sober idealism, President John F. Kennedy had called a generation to service and summoned a nation to greatness. Today, we honor his memory and celebrate his enduring imprint on American history.”
He continued to highlight all of the massive achievements John F Kennedy made during the three years he served during his term. “During his final year in office, he proposed a civil rights bill that called for an end to segregation in America. And recognizing women’s basic right to earn a living equal to their efforts, he signed the Equal Pay Act into law.”
“Today and the decades to come, let us carry his legacy forward. Let us face today’s tests by beckoning the spirit he embodied—that fearless, resilient, uniquely American character that has always driven our nation to defy the odds, write our own destiny and make the world anew.”
After that, President officially made today a day of remembrance for John F. Kennedy.
On Wednesday, the President also paid tribute to JFK by visiting his grave site and laying a wreath down on his resting place. He also presented the Presidential Medal of Freedom, an award created by John F Kennedy to both Oprah Winfrey and Bill Clinton, as well as sixteen other Americans who were both alive and deceased.
“These are men and women who in their extraordinary lives remind us all of the beauty of the human spirit, the values that define us as Americans, the potential that lives inside all of us,” he said.
