Czechoslovak and Czech President Václav Havel delivered the powerful address before the Joint Session of the U. S. Congress on February 21, 1990, two months after being elected by the people and three months after the fall of the Iron Curtain.

In his remarks, Ambassador of the Czech Republic to the United States, Petr Gandalovič, spoke of Havel’s intellectual legacy living on in institutions and projects such as the Václav Havel Library in Prague and the Václav Havel Library Foundation in New York. He also reiterated the invaluable role of the Václav Havel Journalism Fellowship which brings young journalists from countries without freedom of the press for a stay in the Czech Republic and the United States.

Standing before the recently dedicated bust of Václav Havel, Ambassador Gandalovič stated, "The bust shall forever be seen by lawmakers and the American public, reminding them of the bond between the Czech Republic and the United States as well as the importance of transatlantic relations."

U. S. Speaker Boehner also spoke highly of Václav Havel's lasting impression in the U. S. saying, "(Havel’s bust) is also a permanent tribute to the friendship between our countries."

Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi, Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer, Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky, daughter of the Czechoslovak WWII veteran Barbara Gibian, members of American Friends of the Czech Republic including Phil Kasik and Robert Doubek, representatives of the Václav Havel Library Foundation including Elliot Berke and Joseph Balaz, and staff from the Embassy of the Czech Republic, among others, were in attendance to celebrate the monumental occasion.

Main photo (from left to right): Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi, Speaker John Boehner, Ambassador Petr Gandalovič, and Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer gather in front of the bust of Václav Havel.

 

Václav Havel's Speech from Feb.21, 1990

Video of Václav Havel's Address to the U.S. Congress