For Immediate Release From The White House!
(A Five-Minute Read)
National Day of Remembrance of the 80th Anniversary of D-Day
On the evening of June 6, 1944, President Franklin D. Roosevelt broadcast a prayer for the Nation. At the time, war was raging in Europe, and Hitler controlled most of it. Freedom and democracy were under assault around the world. But on that day, hope had landed on the beaches of Normandy when 73,000 Americans joined the Allied forces to carry out one of the greatest military missions of all time — a mission that would become known as D-Day. Knowing the fate of the free world rested in their hands, President Roosevelt asked our Nation to pray for these courageous service members’ strength as they “set upon a mighty endeavor, a struggle to preserve our Republic, our religion, and our civilization, and to set free a suffering humanity.” On the 80th anniversary of D-Day, may we thank these service members for their bravery and sacrifice. May we honor their heroism, which liberated a continent and saved the world. And may we recommit to the future they fought and which many died for.
The brave Airmen, Coast Guardsmen, Sailors, Soldiers, and Marines who fought on D-Day faced unparalleled resistance. Nazi Germany had reinforced the Atlantic Wall, lining miles of dangerous cliffs and rocky coastlines with landmines, beach and water obstacles, and machine gunners while also reinforcing its bunkers. So, when 7,000 vessels carrying nearly 160,000 service members from eight Allied countries approached Normandy, victory was never guaranteed. Our paratroopers that jumped behind enemy lines in the night and other military forces had to endure barrages of gunfire, trek through barbed wire, and climb steep sea walls. Over 2,500 Americans made the ultimate sacrifice, giving their lives so that the whole world might know freedom.
Today, we remember all the Americans who laid down their lives on D-Day to help end the tyranny of fascism across Europe, liberate oppressed peoples, and ensure the flame of liberty would burn bright around the world. Their success marked the beginning of the end of Nazi brutality, World War II, and the Holocaust — one of the darkest chapters in human history. It set the foundations of an enduring peace that still helps guide international cooperation and affairs today. We owe these service members, who represent the greatest of the Greatest Generation, as well as their families a debt of gratitude that we can never fully repay.
As we reflect on the sacrifices made on D-Day, we are reminded that freedom is not free and it has never been guaranteed. Every generation has to earn it, fight for it, and defend it in the battle between autocracy and democracy — between the greed of a few and the rights of many. Eighty years after our Nation’s brave Airmen, Coast Guardsmen, Sailors, Soldiers, and Marines embarked on D-Day — and as Americans everywhere answered the call to prayer and filled their hearts and homes with hope — may we honor the faith they kept in our Nation and their legacy by upholding the future that they died for — one grounded in freedom, democracy, opportunity, and equality for all.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., 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 June 6, 2024, as a National Day of Remembrance of the 80th Anniversary of D-Day. I call upon all Americans to observe this day with programs, ceremonies, and activities that honor those who fought and died so that men and women they had never met might know what it is to be free.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this fifth day of June, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-four, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-eighth.
JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.
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Biden on D-Day Anniversary: These fallen saved the world. 'Let us be worthy of their sacrifice' Story by Michael Collins
COLLEVILLE-SUR-MER, France – They came by the thousands, back to the hilltop overlooking the sea.
On a sunny afternoon in late spring, World War II veterans in the winter of life, many of them in wheelchairs or supported by canes, returned alongside President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron and other dignitaries to remember a bloody day that changed the world.
From the hallowed ground where many of their fallen comrades rest beneath French soil, they honored the dead and commemorated the events of June 6, 1944, which the world now knows as D-Day.
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"You want to know the price of freedom? Come here to Normandy," said Biden, who, at 81, was just a toddler on the day of the D-Day landings.
Eighty years ago, some 160,000 troops from the United States, Canada, Great Britain and other allies descended upon these shores in Normandy by air, land and seat to liberate Nazi-occupied France.
The fighting was brutal and the casualties enormous – more than 4,400 Allied troops were killed – but the unprecedented show of unified military power would mark the beginning of the end of Nazi Germany’s grip on Europe.
“It is difficult to underestimate or undersell the significance of D-Day and what happened on D-Day,” said Charles Djou, secretary of the American Battle Monuments Commission, which manages and operates 24 American military cemeteries abroad. “Everything in this world turned on that day. And the fact that we succeeded on that day has made America and the world, the West, what it is.”
The heroes of D-Day "kept freedom alive," Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said.
"You saved the world. We must only defend it," he said. "Gentlemen, we salute you."
Some of the veterans who came back to France on Thursday for ceremonies marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day had been among the first to arrive and fight. A crowd estimated at 10,000 to 12,000 attended the ceremony at the Normandy American Cemetery, including four-star officers, more than 150 members of Congress and dozens of members of the French Parliament. Other ceremonies also were scheduled and were expected to draw 25 heads of state.
An ocean breeze floated across the American cemetery, fluttering the small American and French flags on each of the graves of nearly 9,400 Americans killed in the war. Sunlight lit the white marble crosses and stars of David that mark each burial site.
Just off the shore, Navy battleships stood guard in the English Channel. Men in military fatigues looked out over the sea from the grassy hillside where allied soldiers advanced and encountered German machine-gun fire.
One by one, Biden and first lady Jill Biden met with veterans ahead of the ceremony from a glass-backed gazebo overlooking Omaha Beach, where many of the soldiers came ashore eight decades ago. Biden saluted, took photos with each and handed them a coin that he said had been especially minted for the event.
During the ceremony, Macron bestowed the Legion of Honor, France's highest award of merit, to 11 veterans from the United States and one from Britain in recognition of their sacrifice. The French president pinned the medal on the lapel of each and then lightly kissed them on each cheek.
In his remarks, Biden drew parallels between the Allied troops who fought to free Europe during World War II and the alliance of nations that has banded together to defend Ukraine in its war with Russia.
Read the full article HERE!:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/biden... ********
Biden Commemorates D-Day Invasion's 80th Anniversary, Linking It To Ukraine Conflict
President Biden marked the 80th anniversary of the D-Day invasion that helped liberate Europe from Nazi Germany on Thursday, attending a ceremony at Normandy American Cemetery alongside French President Emmanuel Macron.
Veterans are awarded a high honor
World War II veterans — dozens of whom were welcomed as returning heroes when they arrived in France this week — were also at the event, a mix of celebrating freedom, remembering the terrible sacrifices it requires, and honoring veterans who put their lives on the line.
"On behalf of the American people and as commander in chief, it's the highest honor to be able to salute you here in Normandy," Biden told the veterans.
"Here you came, to join our efforts with your own soldiers, and to make France a free nation," Macron told the former service members. "And you are back here today — at home, if I may say."
Under clear and sunny skies, Macron presented a group of veterans with the Legion of Honor, France's highest decoration, pinning medals to their jackets as the crowd applauded. The cemetery and its memorial sits just inland from the famed Omaha Beach, on the shore where more than 150,000 U.S. and Allied troops streamed ashore in a massive amphibious assault.
Event nods to Ukraine's war against Russia
As it evoked that historic and bloody day, the event also took note of a current conflict: Europe is once again a place of war, as Russia seeks to pummel neighboring Ukraine into submission.
"Ukraine has been invaded by a tyrant bent on domination," Biden said, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The U.S., NATO and its allies stand with Ukraine and won't "walk away," Biden said. He warned of a ripple effect of violence and aggression, should Russian succeed in subjugating Ukraine.
Read the full article HERE!:
https://www.npr.org/2024/06/06/nx-s1-49949...
Posted By: agnes levine
Thursday, June 6th 2024 at 11:26AM
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