REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT of USA
AT AMERICA'S MILLENNIUM GALA
The Lincoln Memorial
11:53 P.M. EST
THE PRESIDENT: Ladies and gentlemen, tonight
we celebrate. The change of centuries, the
dawning of a new millennium
are now just minutes away. We celebrate the past. We have honored
America's remarkable achievements, struggles,
and triumphs in the 20th century. We celebrate the
future, imagining an even more remarkable
21st century.
As we marvel at the changes of the last hundred
years, we dream of what changes the next hundred,
and the next thousand, will bring. And as
powerful as our memories are, our dreams must be even
stronger. For when our memories outweigh our
dreams we become old, and it is the eternal destiny
of America to remain forever young, always
reaching beyond, always becoming, as our founders
pledged, a more perfect union. So we Americans
must not fear change. Instead, let us welcome it,
embrace it, and create it.
The great story of the 20th century is the
triumph of freedom and free people, a story told in the
drama of new immigrants, the struggles for
equal rights, the victories over totalitarianism, the
stunning advances in economic well-being,
in culture, in health, in space and telecommunications,
and in building a world in which more than
half the people live under governments of their own
choosing, for the first time in all history.
We must never forget the meaning of the 20th century, or the
gifts of those who worked and marched, who
fought and died, for the triumph of freedom.
So as we ring in
this new year, in a new century, in a new millennium, we must, now
and always,
echo Dr. King, in the words of the old American
hymn, "Let freedom ring." (Applause.)
If the story of the 20th century is the triumph
of freedom, what will the story of the 21st century
be?
Let it be the triumph of freedom wisely used,
to bring peace to a world in which we honor our
differences, and even more, our common humanity.
Such a triumph will require great efforts from us
all. It will require us to stand against the
forces of hatred and bigotry, terror and destruction. It will
require us to continue to prosper, to alleviate
poverty, to better balance the demands of work and
family, and to serve each of us in our communities.
It will require us to take better care of our
environment. It will require us to make further
breakthroughs in science and technology, to
cure dread diseases, heal broken bodies, lengthen life,
and unlock secrets from global warming to
the black holes in the universe. And, perhaps most
important, it will require us to share --
with our fellow Americans and, increasingly, with our fellow
citizens of the world, the economic benefits
of globalization; the political benefits of democracy and
human rights; the educational and health benefits
of all things modern, from the Internet to the
genetic encyclopedia, to the mysteries beyond
our solar system.
Now, we may not be able to eliminate all hateful
intolerance, but we can develop a healthy
intolerance of bigotry, oppression, and abject
poverty. We may not be able to eliminate all the harsh
consequences of globalization, but we can
communicate more and travel more and trade more, in a
way that lifts the lives of ordinary working
families everywhere, and the quality of our global
environment.
We may not be able to eliminate all the failures
of government and international institutions, but we
can certainly strengthen democracy so all
children are prepared for the 21st century
world and
protected from its harshest side effects.
And we can do so much more to work together, to
cooperate among ourselves, to seize the problems
and the opportunities of this ever small planet
we all call home. In short, if we want the
story of the 21st century to be the triumph
of peace and
harmony, we must embrace our common humanity
and our shared destiny.
Now, we're just moments from that new
millennium. Two centuries ago, as the framers were crafting
our Constitution, Benjamin Franklin was often
seen in Independence Hall looking at a painting of the
sun low on the horizon. When, at long last,
the Constitution finally was signed, Mr. Franklin, said: "I
have often wondered whether that sun was rising
or setting. Today I have the happiness to know it is
a rising sun."
Well, two centuries later, we know the sun
will always rise on America, as long as each new
generation lights the fire of freedom. Our
children are ready. So, again, the torch is passed -- to a
new century of young Americans! (Applause.)
END 11:59 P.M. EST
This is a copy of the original on: http://www.whitehouse.gov/WH/New/html/20000104.html