[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1401 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 1401

 Commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Azorean Refugee Act of 1958 
  and celebrating the extensive contributions of Portuguese-American 
                   communities to the United States.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 31, 2008

Mr. Costa (for himself, Mr. Nunes, Mr. Cardoza, Mr. Kennedy, Mr. Frank 
of Massachusetts, and Mr. McGovern) submitted the following resolution; 
          which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Azorean Refugee Act of 1958 
  and celebrating the extensive contributions of Portuguese-American 
                   communities to the United States.

Whereas from September 27, 1957, until October 24, 1958, a series of violent 
        eruptions and earthquakes that amounted to a natural calamity destroyed 
        the economic infrastructure in Faial Island, Portugal, and impacted all 
        of the 9 islands in the Azores archipelago;
Whereas most of Faial Island's 25,000 people lost their livelihoods in the midst 
        of fumes, smoke, lava, and constant earthquakes, and had no choice but 
        to escape to other islands in the Azores;
Whereas the United States offered a helping hand to the distressed people of the 
        Azores by introducing and passing the Azorean Refugee Act, spearheaded 
        by Senators John Pastore of Rhode Island and John F. Kennedy of 
        Massachusetts, which became Public Law 85-892;
Whereas the Azorean Refugee Act made 1,500 special nonquota immigrant visas 
        available to the destitute victims of the Capelinhos Volcano in the 
        Azores, and was extended until 1962 to allow the entry of an even 
        greater number of refugees;
Whereas the eruption of the Capelinhos Volcano led to a wave of Portuguese 
        immigration that brought more than 175,000 Azoreans to the United States 
        between 1960 and 1980;
Whereas according to the United States Census from the year 2000, there were 
        1,176,615 Portuguese-Americans in the United States, and the vast 
        majority of these were of Azorean descent;
Whereas major communities of Portuguese-Americans of Azorean descent can be 
        found in southeastern New England; the areas around San Francisco, San 
        Diego, and the San Joaquin Valley, California; Hawaii; and the New 
        Jersey/New York metropolitan area;
Whereas these recent immigrants have built on the work initiated by earlier 
        arrivals, and through their remarkable work ethic have, among other 
        activities, distinguished themselves in farming and fishing;
Whereas by the 1970s, roughly half of all dairy farms in the San Joaquin Valley 
        were owned and operated by Portuguese-Americans and contributed to 
        making California the number one dairy producing State in the Nation;
Whereas the Portuguese of the American east coast have dominated the fishing 
        industry, and contributed to making New Bedford, Massachusetts, one of 
        our Nation's greatest seaports;
Whereas Portuguese immigrants and their descendants have contributed 
        substantially to American workforce, leadership, and culture, and 
        produced successful physicians, lawyers, and university professors;
Whereas in the public sector, Portuguese-Americans have become legislators at 
        the local, State, and Federal level, state attorney generals, justices, 
        judges, and successful lawyers, and are members of school committees and 
        boards, as well as city councils;
Whereas as the governor of California, Ronald Reagan proclaimed the 2nd week of 
        March as Portuguese Immigrant Week in 1969; and
Whereas President John F. Kennedy recognized that immigrants coming from the 
        Azores had made excellent contributions to our Nation as citizens: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) commemorates the 50th anniversary of the Azorean 
        Refugee Act of 1958;
            (2) celebrates the Azorean Refugee Act of 1958 as worthy 
        and admirable legislation that represented America at its 
        finest, reaching out to people in need; and
            (3) recognizes the momentous contributions of Portuguese 
        immigrants and their descendants to the United States, who have 
        so greatly enriched our Nation.
                                 <all>