WHEREAS, The Founding Fathers of our nation, many of whom
read Greek political philosophy in the original Greek, drew upon
the experience and philosophy of ancient Greece in forming our
nation's representative democracy; and
WHEREAS, The modern Greek national anthem, "Hymn to Liberty,"
illustrates Greece's strong bond with and respect for our nation
and ideals by including the words "most heartily was gladdened
George Washington's brave land"; and
WHEREAS, Ancient Greeks in the city-state of Athens made
vital contributions to democratic governance by inventing the
concept of citizenship where laws were proposed by citizen
assemblies and subject to popular vote, by recognizing the
principle of separation of powers in independent Athenian
legislative, executive and judicial branches and by conceiving
and implementing the concept of trial by jury; and
WHEREAS, Sir Winston Churchill said of the Greeks, "Hence, we
will not say that Greeks fight like heroes, but that heroes
fight like Greeks," recognizing that Greece played a major role
in World War II by delaying the German invasion of Russia; and
WHEREAS, Greek Americans served with distinction in all
branches of the United States military during World War II and,
through the American Hellenic Educational Progressive
Association, raised more than $253 million in war bonds for the
United States; and
WHEREAS, Throughout the 20th century, Greece was one of only
three nations to ally with the United States in every major
international conflict, and to this day, the Greek nation
remains a reliable strategic partner and steadfast ally of the
United States; and
WHEREAS, Greek Americans continue to demonstrate loyalty to
20240HR0308PN2553 - 2 -
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30