The heart of the question is whether all Americans are to be afforded equal rights and equal opportunities, whether we are going to treat our fellow Americans as we want to be treated.

Those who do nothing are inviting shame as well as violence.

I hope to go to Italy within the next 2 weeks and to have a chance to see where it is from whence you came and to say hello to those members of your families who are still waiting at the docks.

Now the time has come for this Nation to fulfill its promise.

We face, therefore, a moral crisis as a country and as a people. It cannot be met by repressive police action. It cannot be left to increased demonstrations in the streets. It cannot be quieted by token moves or talk. It is a time to act…

They should have the equal right to develop their talent and their ability and their motivation, to make something of themselves.

It ought to be possible, therefore, for American students of any color to attend any public institution they select without having to be backed up by troops.

You have countries which have a population for example, of 1/25 or 1/20 of that of Italy, which have an immigration quota to the United States greater than Italy, and which use only half of the available quota and, of course, the Italian…

It ought to be possible, in short, for every American to enjoy the privileges of being American without regard to his race or his color.

I want to express a warm welcome to all of you.

It ought to be possible for American consumers of any color to receive equal service in places of public accommodation, such as hotels and restaurants and theaters and retail stores, without being forced to resort to demonstrations in the…

I am, therefore, asking the Congress to enact legislation giving all Americans the right to be served in facilities which are open to the public--hotels, restaurants, theaters, retail stores, and similar establishments.

I am delighted today to approve the Equal Pay Act of 1963, which prohibits arbitrary discrimination against women in the payment of wages.

State, city and University officials have reported that, if you were to stay away from the campus, thus fulfilling your legal duty, there is little danger of any disorder being incited which the local town and campus authorities could not…

I AM gratified by the dedication to law and order expressed in your telegram informing me of your use of National Guardsmen at the University of Alabama.

It affirms our determination that when women enter the labor force they will find equality in their pay envelopes.

Whatever we leave undone this year we must move on this in January.

This measure adds to our laws another structure basic to democracy.

It is for these reasons that I believe we must expand day-care centers and provide other assistance which I have recommended to the Congress.

The principles which guided the Government of the United States in establishing the Center are common to all of us in the community of nations now participating in this program.

As citizens of that community, you are, as the result of your studies here, better prepared to meet its burdens and its opportunities.

I hope that all of you carry away a fuller understanding of all our various cultures, most of which are older than the United States.

My warm congratulations to each of the students who is today completing his rich experience at the East and West Center.

Equally important, I hope you carry away a better idea of the genuine warmth of friendship for other peoples on which the free world community is founded.

I want to express a very warm aloha at being back here in Hawaii, and to tell you that I come from another part of the United States, 6,000 miles away, and we are proud of this city and this State and what it stands for.