WHEREAS,  on December 7, 1941, without warning and minutes before 8 a.m., aircraft of the Imperial Japanese Navy and Air Force attacked United States military installations at Pearl Harbor and elsewhere on the island of Oahu, Hawaii; and

WHEREAS,  the bulk of the attack at Pearl Harbor lasted for approximately 5 hours, during which 2,403 members of the United States Armed Forces were killed or mortally wounded, 1,247 members of the Armed Forces were wounded and 57 civilians lost their lives; and

WHEREAS,  President Franklin Delano Roosevelt declared the day of the attack on Pearl Harbor "a date which will live in infamy," and the people of the United States became united in remembrance of their fallen countrymen and committed to defending the United States against all aggressors; and

WHEREAS,  the following day, on December 8, 1941, Congress declared war against Japan and 3 days later against Germany, thus beginning the United States's involvement in a global conflict that would define a generation; and

WHEREAS,  after nearly 4 years of warfare, on September 2, 1945, after victory on the European front, World War II ended with the Japanese surrendering aboard the USS Missouri; and

WHEREAS,  on August 23, 1994, Congress enacted Public Law 103-308, which designated December 7th of each year as National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day and requests the President to issue each year a proclamation calling on the people of the United States to observe National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day with appropriate ceremonies and activities; now, therefore, be it