March 24 (UPI) — Editor’s note: Previous editions of this article misstated when the Greek Revolution began. It has now been corrected to 1821.
President Donald Trump celebrated Greek Independence Day at the White House on Monday with a proclamation declaring 204 years of “glorious Greek sovereignty and freedom.”
Greek Independence Day, which will be celebrated Tuesday in Greece, Cyprus and Greek diaspora centers, is recognized every March 25 with a public holiday, parades and other events.
“Today, Mr. President, you bestow extraordinary honor upon the Greek American people with the annual Greek Independence Day celebration here at the White House,” His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America told a crowded East Room on Monday.
“Thank you for continuing this wonderful tradition that recognizes the Greek roots of democracy. We are here to celebrate the world’s first democracy, Greece,” he added. “But we are also here to celebrate the world’s greatest democracy, the United States of America.”
President Donald Trump celebrates Greek Independence Day with Archbishop Elpidophoros in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Monday. Trump signed a proclamation declaring March 25 Greek Independence Day as he honored “proud, hard-working Greek American patriots.” Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI
The Archbishop gifted Trump with a cross to help him “bring peace to the world and make America invincible.”
“It is my great honor to present you with this holy cross. This cross is the very symbol that led the great Roman emperor Constantine to victory,” he added, before handing the religious symbol to the president.
Archbishop Elpidophoros of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America presents President Donald Trump with a holy cross during a Greek Independence Day celebration in the East Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., on Monday. Photo by Samuel Corum/UPI
“I appreciate that magnificent cross. It will be with me always,” Trump replied, before welcoming “hundreds of proud, hard-working Greek American patriots” to the White House.
“I will sign the proclamation to officially recognize tomorrow, March 25th, as Greek Independence Day celebrating 204 years of glorious Greek sovereignty and freedom,” Trump said. “Having His Eminence, the Archbishop, is very special. And I’ve been doing this from the very beginning. We missed four years, unfortunately, bad things happened.”
President Donald Trump holds the holy cross presented to him by Archbishop Elpidophoros of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America during a Greek Independence Day celebration in the East Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., on Monday. President Trump thanked the Archbishop and said, “I appreciate that magnificent cross. It will be with me always.” Photo by Samuel Corum/UPI
Trump then thanked each Greek member of his administration.
“I also want to thank Greeks for Trump, those are the ones I really like,” the president said to loud cheers.
President Donald Trump speaks alongside Archbishop Elpidophoros of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America during a Greek Independence Day celebration in the East Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., on Monday. Photo by Samuel Corum/UPI
On March 25, 1821, Greek patriots fought to reclaim their country from the foreign Ottoman Empire. President James Monroe said at the time that the whole civilized world was invested in a victory for the Greek people.
“President Monroe understood that Americans were bound by history and culture to the birthplace of democracy and the cradle of western civilization from the pages of our Constitution to the architecture of this capital city of ours to the very words of the English language, the legacy of the Greeks is all around us,” Trump said Monday.
President Donald Trump signs a proclamation recognizing March 25th as Greek Independence Day during a Greek Independence Day celebration in the East Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., on Monday, to honor “204 years of glorious Greek sovereignty and freedom.” Photo by Samuel Corum/UPI
“But perhaps the greatest gift we have inherited from that amazing culture is our incredible Greek American community that is now more than 3 million strong.”
During the ceremony, Trump also honored Alex Skarlatos, who is a former Oregon Army National Guard soldier and current member of the Oregon House of Representatives. Skarlatos helped stop the Thalys train attack near Paris in 2015, when he and two of his comrades took down an armed terrorist.
Kimberly Guilfoyle, President Trump’s nominee to be the U.S. ambassador to Greece, honors “our rich history and enduring bond,” alongside President Donald Trump during a Greek Independence Day event in the East Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., on Monday. Photo by Samuel Corum/UPI
And Trump honored Kimberly Guilfoyle, who he has nominated as the next U.S. ambassador to Greece.
“Today we celebrate and cherish our rich history and our enduring bond, the United States and Greece and the founding of the Hellenic Republic,” she said.
