Richard Nixon photo

Remarks to Students at the John Adams Elementary School in Riverside, California

November 02, 1970

If I could have your attention for just a moment, when we arrived at the airport just a moment ago at Riverside, your principal, Mr. [John] Allen, said that school would be closing at 3 o'clock and asked if on the way over to see my aunt--who is 90 years of age, incidentally, and my mother's oldest sister--asked if we would stop by your school.

It is something I don't get a chance to do very often, but I want to say how very happy I am to be here at this school and to tell you that you can be very proud of your State, of your country.

I also want to say something about your teachers, your principal, and the others.

How many like your teachers? Everyone?

You had better say that; they are standing right back of you. All of you have been studying, I know, a great deal about the world as well as America, a lot more than we did when I was in school. And that means that education in America is better today than it was many years ago. I have had an opportunity to see all of the world. As a matter of fact, I have been now to 74 countries, in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and, of course, in Europe.

And there are many wonderful people in other countries, and many very proud countries. But I think all of you should know that we in the United States--and I can say this to young people with all of your future ahead of you--we in the United States can feel very fortunate that we live in America. This is a great country, and it is a very good country.

What will really bring this home to you: The other day I was in Yugoslavia and also in Romania--these are countries with very different systems from ours, Communist systems--but 350,000 people came out in the rain, and they cheered, and they cheered because they realize that America is a country that is strong, but that we threaten no other country, and that there is more freedom, there is more opportunity, there is more hope in America than any place in the world.

Let me say this country is not perfect. We have lots of problems. You have been hearing about the problems in an election campaign. But I can assure you that your chance to grow up and, in the years ahead, to change America for the better--that is something that in most of the world young people don't have.

So I simply want to say that I am very happy to speak to all of the people in this school, to tell you that you are fortunate to be going to a fine school, to have these dedicated people as your teachers; the principal who graduated from L.A. State, I understand, in 1958.

I think we ought to give a hand to all the teachers and the principal. How about that?

Note: The President spoke at approximately 10:40 a.m.

Richard Nixon, Remarks to Students at the John Adams Elementary School in Riverside, California Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/240461

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