Religious Freedom Day, 2016, 3687-3690 [2016-01323]

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• Executive Office of the President

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 13 (Thursday, January 21, 2016)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 3687-3690]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-01323]



[[Page 3687]]

Vol. 81

Thursday,

No. 13

January 21, 2016

Part IV





The President





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Proclamation 9389--Religious Freedom Day, 2016



Proclamation 9390--Martin Luther King, Jr., Federal Holiday, 2016



Executive Order 13716--Revocation of Executive Orders 13574, 13590, 
13622, and 13645 With Respect to Iran, Amendment of Executive Order 
13628 With Respect to Iran, and Provision of Implementation Authorities 
for Aspects of Certain Statutory Sanctions Outside the Scope of U.S. 
Commitments Under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action of July 14, 
2015


                        Presidential Documents 



Federal Register / Vol. 81 , No. 13 / Thursday, January 21, 2016 / 
Presidential Documents

___________________________________________________________________

Title 3--
The President

[[Page 3689]]

                Proclamation 9389 of January 15, 2016

                
Religious Freedom Day, 2016

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                Since our country's founding, religious freedom has 
                been heralded as one of our most cherished ideals. The 
                right to practice religion freely has brought 
                immigrants from all over the world to our shores, often 
                in the face of great adversity, so they could live 
                their lives in accordance with the dictates of their 
                consciences. Some of America's earliest settlers, the 
                Pilgrims, arrived at our shores in search of a more 
                tolerant society, free from religious persecution. 
                Since that time, people of many religious traditions 
                have added their own threads to the fabric of our 
                Nation, helping advance a profound and continuous 
                vindication of the idea of America.

                When the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom was 
                adopted on January 16, 1786, it formed a blueprint for 
                what would become the basis for the protection of 
                religious liberty enshrined in our Constitution. 
                Drafted by Thomas Jefferson, the statute proclaims that 
                ``all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to 
                maintain, their opinions in matters of religion, and 
                that the same shall in no wise diminish, enlarge, or 
                affect their civil capacities.'' The First Amendment 
                prohibits Government from establishing religion, and it 
                protects the free exercise of every faith. Our 
                Government does not sponsor a religion, nor does it 
                pressure anyone to practice a particular faith, or any 
                faith at all. The United States stands for the 
                protection of equal rights for all people to practice 
                their faith freely, without fear or coercion, and as 
                Americans, we understand that when people of all 
                religions are accepted and are full and equal members 
                of our society, we are all stronger and freer.

                Our commitment to religious freedom has fostered 
                unprecedented religious diversity and freedom of 
                religious practice. But these ideals are not self-
                executing. Rather, they require a sustained commitment 
                by each generation to uphold and preserve them. Here at 
                home, my Administration is working to preserve 
                religious liberty and enforce civil rights laws that 
                protect religious freedom--including laws that protect 
                employees from religious discrimination and require 
                reasonable accommodation of religious practices on the 
                job. We will keep upholding the right of religious 
                communities to establish places of worship and 
                protecting the religious rights of those so often 
                forgotten by society, such as incarcerated persons and 
                individuals confined to institutions. We will also 
                continue to protect students from discrimination and 
                harassment that is based on their faith, and we will 
                continue to enforce hate crime laws, including those 
                perpetrated based on a person's actual or perceived 
                religion. This work is crucial, particularly given the 
                recent spike in reports of threats and violence against 
                houses of worship, children, and adults simply because 
                of their religious affiliation.

                As we strive to uphold religious freedom at home, we 
                recognize that this basic element of human dignity does 
                not stop at our shores, and we work to promote 
                religious freedom around the globe. We are working with 
                a broad coalition against those who have subjected 
                religious minorities to unspeakable violence and 
                persecution, and we are mobilizing religious and civic 
                leaders to defend vulnerable religious communities. In 
                addition, we are calling for the elimination of 
                improper restrictions that suppress religious

[[Page 3690]]

                practice, coordinating with governments around the 
                world to promote religious freedom for citizens of 
                every faith, and expanding training for our diplomats 
                on how to monitor and advocate for this freedom. All 
                people deserve the fundamental dignity of practicing 
                their faith free from fear, intimidation, and violence.

                On Religious Freedom Day, let us recommit ourselves to 
                protecting religious minorities here at home and around 
                the world. May we remember those who have been 
                persecuted, tortured, or murdered for their faith and 
                reject any politics that targets people because of 
                their religion, including any suggestion that our laws, 
                policies, or practices should single out certain faiths 
                for disfavored treatment. And as one Nation, let us 
                state clearly and without equivocation that an attack 
                on any faith is an attack on every faith and come 
                together to promote religious freedom for all.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, 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 January 16, 2016 as 
                Religious Freedom Day. I call on all Americans to 
                commemorate this day with events and activities that 
                teach us about this critical foundation of our Nation's 
                liberty, and that show us how we can protect it for 
                future generations at home and around the world.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                fifteenth day of January, in the year of our Lord two 
                thousand sixteen, and of the Independence of the United 
                States of America the two hundred and fortieth.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2016-01323
Filed 1-20-16; 11:15 am]
Billing code 3295-F6-P