Date Created:
Place Created: Washington, D.C.
Year Created: 1968
Historical Theme:
Description: Proclamation 3869, issued by President Lyndon B. Johnson on September 17, 1968, established National Hispanic Heritage Week to recognize the contributions of Hispanic Americans to the United States in culture, business, science, and military service. The week was timed to coincide with the independence anniversaries of several Latin American countries: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua on September 15; Mexico on September 16; and Chile on September 18. Johnson called on Americans, especially educators, to observe the week with appropriate ceremonies and activities. In 1988, President Ronald Reagan expanded the observance to a month, resulting in the current National Hispanic Heritage Month, celebrated annually from September 15 to October 15.
Categories of Documents:
Proclamation 3869
NATIONAL HISPANIC HERITAGE WEEK, 1968
By the President of the United States of America
September 17, 1968
A Proclamation
It is with special pride that I call the attention of my fellow citizens to the great contribution to our national heritage made by our people of Hispanic descent—not only in the fields of culture, business, and science, but also through their valor in battle.
Several of our States and many of our cities proudly bear Hispanic names and continue Hispanic traditions that enrich our national life. The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico has given an example to the world by lifting the per capita income of its inhabitants through “Operation Bootstrap” from $256 to $1,047 in 10 years.
The people of Hispanic descent are the heirs of missionaries, captains, soldiers, and farmers who were motivated by a young spirit of adventure, and a desire to settle freely in a free land. This heritage is ours.
Wishing to pay special tribute to the Hispanic tradition, and having in mind the fact that our five Central American neighbors celebrate their Independence Day on the fifteenth of September and the Republic of Mexico on the sixteenth, the Congress, by House Joint Resolution 1299, has requested the President to issue annually a proclamation designating the week including September 15 and 16 as National Hispanic Heritage Week.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, LYNDON B. JOHNSON, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim the week beginning September 15, 1968, as National Hispanic Heritage Week, and I call upon the people of the United States, especially the educational community, to observe that week with appropriate ceremonies and activities.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this seventeenth day of September, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and sixty-eight, and of the Independence of the United States of America the one hundred and ninety-third.
Washington, D.C.