Allen Weinstein Quotes (25 Quotes)

We live in a world of increasing dependence on electronic records and retrieval, unprecedented security and preservation concerns, and insufficient attention to civic and democratic education.

The Foundation for the National Archives is a valuable partner with the National Archives in helping to make history relevant and exciting to all Americans, ... The Records of Achievement Award, given by the Foundation, helps underscore the importance of using primary sources to achieve this goal. I am delighted that Mr. Brokaw, distinguished broadcast journalist and historian, has agreed to accept the award this year. His books and his reporting have shown a keen understanding of American history and a respect for unearthing primary sources to tell the story.

This is an important step for the National Archives to achieve its goal of becoming an archive without walls. Our new strategic plan emphasizes the importance of providing access to records anytime, anywhere.

The idea is to let people get on with their research and not reclassify documents unless it's absolutely necessary.

The allegation that I or the Directors supporting me had deliberately avoided payment on a Santa Barbara hotel booking is false.

NARA must provide security at our facilities to protect our public patrons, our staff, and our holdings.

Then as now, whatever disagreements over policies existed among Americans - and there were many such bitter policy disputes - the purposes and goals for which Americans fought were clearly understood.

Classified agreements are the antithesis of our reason for being. Our focus is on the preservation of records and ensuring their availability to the American public, while at the same time fulfilling the people's expectation that we will properly safeguard the classified records entrusted to our custody.

The Archivist of the United States essentially works for the American people across partisan lines and not, regardless of which Administration nominates the person, for a particular President or political party.

Understanding our records is key to understanding our history. As custodians of America's national memory, the National Archives is grateful for the generous support of both the Foundation and Discovery Communications in making Democracy Starts Here, whic

to the best of our knowledge.

This awareness instills a fierce desire to protect that heritage and - in doing so - to educate Americans in the meaning and importance of our pivotal documents.

In the Federal Government, electronic records are as indispensable as their paper counterparts for documenting citizens' rights, the actions for which officials are accountable, and the nation's history.

But we will lose the millions of records being created daily in a dizzying array of electronic forms unless we find a way to preserve and keep them accessible indefinitely.

Our new strategic plan emphasizes the importance of providing access to records anytime, anywhere. This is one of many initiatives that we are launching to make our goal a reality.

We're in the access business, not the classification business.

Finally, a passion for working on archives or records management is obviously essential to performing NARA's mission successfully.

The Archivist of the United States works for the American people, indifferent to partisanship regardless of which political party dominates the Congress or the Executive branch of Government.

Thus, the Archivist must display at all times scrupulous independence and a devotion to the laws and principles which govern the responsibilities of the office.

Not only the Archivist alone but all who work for NARA are designated custodians of America's national memory.

Therefore, the Archivist must display at all times a devotion to the laws and principles governing the responsibilities of his office.

history of our times.

For the Archivist, this role is a result of his obligation to preserve and assure timely and maximum access to our governmental records in the evolving historic saga of the American people.

Research promoted by NARA within a major coalition of Federal and private sector research partners has at last demonstrated that an Electronic Records Archives can be built.

As Archivist, I will enforce the laws regarding access to public records at all times and instances to the very best of my ability.