When the United States stands up for human rights, by example at home and by effort abroad, we align ourselves with men and women around the world who struggle for the right to speak their minds, to choose their leaders, and to be treated with dignity and respect. We also strengthen our security and well being, because the abuse of human rights can feed many of the global dangers that we confront - from armed conflict and humanitarian crises, to corruption and the spread of ideologies that promote hatred and violence.

We remember the specter of sectarian violence -- al Qaeda's attacks on mosques and pilgrims, militias that carried out campaigns of intimidation and campaigns of assassination. And in the face of ancient divisions, you stood firm to help those Iraqis who put their faith in the future.

We have to create that bridge for the future. And that means making sure we're paying attention to the wages of workers in countries, making sure that we're investing in their education and their skills.

If you've got a business, you didn't build that. Somebody else made that happen.

I think that Mr. Snowden raised some legitimate concerns. How he did it was something that did not follow the procedures and practices of our intelligence community. If everybody took the approach that I make my own decisions about these issues, then it would be very hard to have an organized government or any kind of national security system.

Hope - Hope in the face of difficulty. Hope in the face of uncertainty. The audacity of hope!

On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.