Irish-American Heritage Month is a special proclamation issued yearly by the US President or Congress to honor the achievements and contributions of Irish

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

 immigrants and their descendants living in the United States of America. March is the Irish-American Heritage Month due to March 17 being the traditional Saint Patrick's Day

Saint Patrick's Day

Saint Patrick's Day is a religious holiday celebrated internationally on 17 March. It commemorates Saint Patrick , the most commonly recognised of the patron saints of :Ireland, and the arrival of Christianity in Ireland. It is observed by the Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion , the Eastern...

. Heritage Months are usually proclaimed to celebrate centuries of contributions by a group to a country, some of which include the US, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

, and the UK.

St. Patrick’s Day is a religious holiday to honor St. Patrick who introduced Christianity

Christianity

Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...

 to Ireland in the early 5th century, but the holiday has evolved into a celebration for all things Irish. Boston

Boston

Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...

 and New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

 both claim the world’s first St. Patrick’s Day parade, according to one's definition of parade

Parade

A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually celebrations of some kind...

. In New York City, it occurred on March 17, 1762, featuring Irish soldiers serving in the British military protecting the Colonies during the French and Indian War

French and Indian War

The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...

. In 1948, President Harry S. Truman

Harry S. Truman

Harry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States . As President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third vice president and the 34th Vice President of the United States , he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, when President Roosevelt died less than three months after beginning his...

, of Scotch-Irish descent, attended the New York St. Patrick's Day parade and gave a speech to attendees. This was a proud moment for the many Irish whose ancestors had to fight stereotypes and prejudice to find acceptance in America. The proudest moment for many people of Irish Catholic

Irish Catholic

Irish Catholic is a term used to describe people who are both Roman Catholic and Irish .Note: the term is not used to describe a variant of Catholicism. More particularly, it is not a separate creed or sect in the sense that "Anglo-Catholic", "Old Catholic", "Eastern Orthodox Catholic" might be...

 descent came in 1961 when one of their own, President John F. Kennedy reviewed the parade.

In tribute to all Irish-Americans, the US Congress, by Public Law 101-418, designated March 1991 as "Irish-American Heritage Month" Congress again proclaimed March as Irish-American Heritage Month for 1995 and 1996.

Within the authority of the Executive Branch, the President of the United States has also issued a proclamation each year since 1991.

George H.W. Bush Irish-American Heritage Month Proclamations

Proclamation 6259 - Irish-American Heritage Month, 1991 March 12, 1991

Proclamation 6408 - Irish-American Heritage Month, 1992 March 4, 1992

William J. Clinton Irish-American Heritage Month Proclamations

Proclamation 6533 - Irish-American Heritage Month, 1993 March 6, 1993

Proclamation 6656 - Irish-American Heritage Month, 1994 March 8, 1994

Proclamation 6771 - Irish-American Heritage Month, 1995 February 23, 1995

Proclamation 6868 - Irish-American Heritage Month, 1996 March 1, 1996

Proclamation 6974 - Irish-American Heritage Month, 1997 February 27, 1997

Proclamation 7070 - Irish-American Heritage Month, 1998 February 27, 1998

Proclamation 7169 - Irish-American Heritage Month, 1999 March 1, 1999

Proclamation 7279 - Irish-American Heritage Month, 2000 March 1, 2000

George W. Bush Irish-American Heritage Month Proclamations

Proclamation 7409 - Irish-American Heritage Month, 2001

Proclamation 7526 - Irish-American Heritage Month 2002

Proclamation 7649 - Irish-American Heritage Month, 2003

Proclamation 7760 - Irish-American Month, 2004

Proclamation 7873 - Irish-American Heritage Month, 2005

Proclamation 7983 - Irish-American Heritage Month, 2006

Proclamation 8107 - Irish-American Heritage Month, 2007

Proclamation 8223 - Irish-American Heritage Month, 2008

Barack Obama Irish-American Heritage Month Proclamations

Proclamation 8350 - Irish-American Heritage Month, 2009

Proclamation 8479 - Irish-American Heritage Month, 2010