Yesterday, First Lady Michelle Obama hosted a reception in the East Room of the White House to mark
Nowruz. The holiday, with roots in Zoroastrianism, celebrates the start of the new year in the Persian calendar. In her remarks (
full text), Mrs. Obama said in part:
I think it’s so fitting that we’re holding this celebration here today because one of my favorite things about the White House is how it is truly the People’s House –- a house that reflects the diversity of culture and traditions that make us who we are as a country. And Nowruz is one of those traditions.
For more than 3,000 years, families and communities in the Middle East, Asia, and all around the world, including here in the United States, have celebrated this holiday to mark the renewal of the earth in springtime....
The
GW Hatchet reports in more detail on the reception.
