[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 952 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 952

 Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives to recognize the 
resettlement of Southeast Asian refugees, commemorate the contributions 
 of Southeast Asian Americans to the United States, urge the President 
   to halt the deportation of Southeast Asian refugees, and advance 
      equitable policies for Southeast-Asian-American communities.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 5, 2020

  Mr. Lowenthal (for himself, Mr. Smith of Washington, Mr. Rouda, Mr. 
 Vargas, Mr. Bera, Mr. McNerney, Mr. Correa, Ms. Speier, Mr. Cisneros, 
   Ms. Pressley, Mr. Cox of California, Ms. Norton, and Mrs. Watson 
Coleman) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 
                       Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives to recognize the 
resettlement of Southeast Asian refugees, commemorate the contributions 
 of Southeast Asian Americans to the United States, urge the President 
   to halt the deportation of Southeast Asian refugees, and advance 
      equitable policies for Southeast-Asian-American communities.

Whereas April 17, 2020, marks the 45th year since the Khmer Rouge began its 
        devastating reign in Cambodia, April 30, 2020, marks the 45th 
        anniversary of the fall of Saigon, December 2, 2020, marks the 45th year 
        since the abolition of the Lao monarchy, and May 1, 2020, marks the 45th 
        year since the Hmong, Lao, and other Lao ethnic minorities from Laos 
        began their evacuation from Laos;
Whereas 2020 commemorates the 45th year of the beginning of the resettlement of 
        Southeast Asian refugees to the United States;
Whereas Southeast Asian Americans comprise more than 3,000,000 individuals in 
        the United States and include the Cham, Hmong, Khmer, Khmer Kampuchea 
        Krom, Khmer Loeu, Khmu, Lahu, Lao, Iu Mien, Montagnards, Phutai, Pnong, 
        Tai Dam, Tai Deng, Tai Lue, and Vietnamese;
Whereas the United States intervened in Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam to prevent 
        the spread of communism in Southeast Asia through direct military 
        interventions and covert and clandestine operations;
Whereas the Vietnamese from South Vietnam allied with the United States in 
        opposition to the expansion of North Vietnam until the fall of Saigon on 
        April 30, 1975, and many Vietnamese still suffer lasting trauma from the 
        war, including exposure to Agent Orange and post-traumatic stress 
        disorder;
Whereas the Central Intelligence Agency and various different agencies enlisted 
        the Hmong, Lao, and Laotian ethnic groups in Laos as allies to aid 
        United States forces in Southeast Asia, waging a 13-year covert 
        operation called the ``Secret Wars'' against the Pathet Lao, Viet Cong, 
        and Northern Vietnamese Army;
Whereas the United States heavily bombed Laos, leaving the country as the most 
        heavily bombed country in the world, with over 580,000 bombing missions 
        between 1964 and 1973;
Whereas Cambodians assisted United States forces during American operations in 
        Cambodia, including Operation Menu;
Whereas the United States dropped 540,000 tons of bombs into Cambodia between 
        1969 and 1973 against Viet Cong forces located in Cambodia, 
        destabilizing a fragile government, resulting in the rise of the Khmer 
        Rouge, and leading to the genocide of an estimated 2,000,000 Cambodians;
Whereas the United States dispersed over 13,000,000 gallons of Agent Orange in 
        Vietnam, 475,000 gallons in Laos, and 40,900 in Cambodia during this 
        era, with many Southeast Asians still impacted by the effects of this 
        toxin;
Whereas over 3,000,000 individuals were displaced by war, conflict, and genocide 
        from Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam;
Whereas between 1975 to the mid-2000s, the United States accepted over 1,200,000 
        Southeast Asians escaping the Vietnam war, persecution in Laos, and 
        Khmer Rouge genocide in Cambodia;
Whereas the resettlement of Southeast Asian refugees in the United States 
        typically placed many individuals and families in communities with 
        inadequate financial, long-term resettlement support and many of these 
        individuals and their children languished in severe poverty;
Whereas many Southeast Asian refugees have thrived and contributed greatly to 
        the economic, educational, military, political, and social culture of 
        the United States since their resettlement;
Whereas despite the success of many Southeast Asian Americans, many still face 
        economic, educational, and linguistic barriers in the United States, in 
        particular, a significant percentage of Cambodian, Hmong, Lao, 
        Vietnamese, and other Southeast Asian Americans endure severe poverty, 
        lack of English proficiency, educational barriers, and unique health 
        disparities as survivors of war and genocide;
Whereas the War on Poverty, including the Personal Responsibility and Work 
        Opportunity Reconciliation Act, decreased resources for low-income, 
        refugee, and immigrant communities to transform from generational 
        poverty;
Whereas, as survivors of war and genocide, Southeast Asian Americans still face 
        disparate health outcomes, including higher rates of physical, mental, 
        and chronic health challenges, including over 60 percent of Cambodians 
        and a significant number of other Southeast Asian Americans who continue 
        to experience post-traumatic stress disorder;
Whereas, as children of the survivors of war and genocide, first and second 
        generation Southeast Asian Americans have intergenerational, compounded 
        trauma that has created poor mental health conditions and education 
        barriers;
Whereas the War on Drugs, Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act, 
        expansion of the incarceration system, and over policing of low-income 
        refugee communities resulted in a significant number of Southeast Asian 
        Americans coming into contact with the criminal justice system;
Whereas the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 
        expanded the definition of what type of crime could result in 
        deportation and limited due process protections for immigrants, 
        refugees, and other noncitizens; the Act also allowed the expanded 
        definition to be applied retroactively without proper consideration of 
        an individual's lived circumstances;
Whereas more than 15,000 Southeast Asian Americans, many of whom were refugees, 
        live in the United States with a final order of removal and over 2,000 
        have been deported since 1998;
Whereas many Southeast Asian Americans with a final order of removal are United 
        States residents who are more than 10 years removed from the time of 
        their criminal convictions and have moved on to become pillars of their 
        communities, homeowners, fathers, mothers, caregivers, and tenured 
        employees;
Whereas the Trump administration's approach to deportation breaks up families 
        and, in some cases, the deportees have never lived in their country of 
        origin, do not speak the language of their country of origin, or do not 
        have a living relative in their country of origin;
Whereas, in December 2018, a total of 55 members of the House of Representatives 
        and 13 Senators signed onto two separate letters by Representatives Judy 
        Chu and Pramila Jayapal and Senators Mazie Hirono and Kamala Harris to 
        the President, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Department 
        of State urging fiscal restraint in the deportation of Southeast Asian 
        Americans; and
Whereas, in December 2018, an additional 22 members of the House of 
        Representatives signed onto a letter to the Department of Homeland 
        Security opposing renegotiations of the bilateral United States and 
        Vietnam memorandum of understanding that would strip deportation 
        protections from Vietnamese Americans who arrived in the United States 
        before July 12, 1995, from deportation: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) commemorates the 45 years since Southeast Asian 
        refugees began resettling in the United States;
            (2) honors the sacrifices made by Southeast-Asian-American 
        communities on behalf of the United States;
            (3) recognizes the contributions of Southeast Asian 
        Americans to the economic, educational, military, political, 
        and social culture of the United States;
            (4) opposes the deportation of Southeast Asian Americans 
        who resettled to the United States as refugees from Cambodia, 
        Laos, and Vietnam;
            (5) urges that President Trump and his administration place 
        an immediate moratorium on the deportation of thousands of 
        Southeast Asian Americans whose crimes occurred more than 10 
        years ago because the House of Representatives honors these 
        individuals as they hold fast to American values of 
        rehabilitation and the need for second chances;
            (6) continues to pursue comprehensive policies that ensure 
        equity and justice for Southeast-Asian-American communities, 
        including in education and health; and
            (7) honors the United States responsibility to refugees, 
        immigrants, and naturalized United States citizens in this 
        community.
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