[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 133 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 133

  Condemning all forms of anti-Asian sentiment as related to COVID-19.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 24, 2021

 Ms. Hirono (for herself, Ms. Duckworth, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Blumenthal, 
Mr. Booker, Mr. Brown, Ms. Cantwell, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Carper, Mr. Casey, 
Mr. Coons, Ms. Cortez Masto, Mr. Durbin, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Kaine, Ms. 
  Klobuchar, Mr. Markey, Mr. Menendez, Mr. Merkley, Mr. Murphy, Mrs. 
Murray, Mr. Padilla, Mr. Reed, Ms. Rosen, Mr. Sanders, Mr. Schatz, Mrs. 
   Shaheen, Ms. Smith, Ms. Stabenow, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. Warner, Mr. 
 Warnock, Ms. Warren, Mr. Whitehouse, Mr. Wyden, Mr. Bennet, and Mrs. 
 Gillibrand) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 
                     the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Condemning all forms of anti-Asian sentiment as related to COVID-19.

Whereas there are 23,000,000 Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the United 
        States, constituting 7 percent of the population of the United States;
Whereas over 2,000,000 Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders are working on the 
        front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic as first responders and in health 
        care, law enforcement, transportation, supermarkets, and other service 
        industries;
Whereas the use of anti-Asian terminology and rhetoric related to COVID-19, such 
        as the ``Chinese Virus'', ``Wuhan Virus'', and ``Kung-flu'' have 
        perpetuated anti-Asian stigma;
Whereas the use of anti-Asian rhetoric has resulted in Asian Americans being 
        harassed, assaulted, and scapegoated for the COVID-19 pandemic;
Whereas, since January 2020, there has been a dramatic increase in reports of 
        hate crimes and incidents against those of Asian descent in all 50 
        States and the District of Columbia;
Whereas, according to a recent report, there were nearly 3,800 reported cases of 
        anti-Asian discrimination related to COVID-19 between March 19, 2020, 
        and February 28, 2021;
Whereas, in incidents of anti-Asian violence occurring in March 2020--

    (1) a woman wearing a mask was kicked and punched at a New York City 
subway station;

    (2) 2 children and 2 adults were stabbed at a wholesale grocery in 
Midland, Texas;

    (3) a couple was assaulted and robbed by a group of attackers in 
Philadelphia; and

    (4) a 16-year-old boy was sent to the hospital after being attacked by 
bullies in Los Angeles, California;

Whereas since the start of the COVID-19 outbreak, anti-Asian discrimination and 
        hate has continued;
Whereas a disproportionate number of attacks, approximately 68 percent, have 
        been directed at Asian-American women;
Whereas since the start of 2021, there has been a surge in anti-Asian attacks 
        targeting predominantly elderly Asian Americans;
Whereas, on January 30, 2021, an 84-year-old Thai man, Vicha Ratanapakdee, died 
        from injuries sustained from an unprovoked assault while on his routine 
        morning walk in San Francisco, California;
Whereas, in January 2021, a series of attacks occurred in Oakland's Chinatown 
        targeting Asian-American seniors, and victims included a 60-year-old man 
        and a 55-year-old woman, who, in separate incidents, were violently 
        shoved to the ground;
Whereas, in February 2021, victims of anti-Asian violence included--

    (1) a 61-year-old Filipino man who was attacked and slashed across his 
face on a New York City subway;

    (2) a Filipino woman in her eighties who was punched in an unprovoked 
attack while riding a trolley in San Diego; and

    (3) a 52-year-old Asian woman who was attacked and forcefully shoved 
while waiting in line outside a bakery in Flushing, New York;

Whereas, on March 16, 2021, 8 people, including 6 women of Asian descent, were 
        shot to death at 3 Atlanta-area businesses and this violence has 
        heightened the pain and fear in the Asian-American and Pacific-Islander 
        communities;
Whereas anti-Asian racism has also resulted in Asian-American businesses being 
        targeted for vandalism;
Whereas there are approximately 2,000,000 Asian-American-owned businesses that 
        generate over $700,000,000,000 in annual revenue and employ millions of 
        workers;
Whereas more than 1,900,000 Asian-American and Pacific-Islander older adults, 
        particularly those older adults who are recent immigrants or have 
        limited English proficiency, may face even greater challenges in dealing 
        with the COVID-19 pandemic, including discrimination, economic 
        insecurity, and language isolation;
Whereas the World Health Organization (referred to in this preamble as the 
        ``WHO'') and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (referred to 
        in this preamble as the ``CDC'') recognize that naming COVID-19 using 
        geographic terms or linking it to a specific ethnicity perpetuates 
        stigma;
Whereas in 2015, the WHO issued guidance calling on media outlets, scientists, 
        and national authorities to avoid naming infectious diseases for 
        locations to avoid stigmatizing groups of people;
Whereas, on February 27, 2020, the Secretary of Health and Human Services 
        stated, ``Ethnicity is not what causes the novel coronavirus'' and that 
        it is inappropriate and inaccurate to call COVID-19 ``the Chinese 
        virus'';
Whereas, on February 28, 2020, the Chief Medical Officer of the CDC said that 
        ``stigma is the enemy of public health'';
Whereas, on March 10, 2020, the Director of the CDC testified that use of the 
        term ``Chinese coronavirus'' is wrong and inappropriate;
Whereas the Secretary General of the United Nations called for international 
        solidarity and an end to any ill-founded discrimination; and
Whereas, on January 26, 2021, the President issued a Presidential Memorandum 
        ``Condemning and Combating Racism, Xenophobia, and Intolerance Against 
        Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the United States'': Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) condemns and denounces all forms of anti-Asian 
        sentiment, including those relating to COVID-19;
            (2) recognizes that the health and safety of all people of 
        the United States, regardless of background, must be the utmost 
        priority;
            (3) condemns all manifestations and expressions of racism, 
        xenophobia, discrimination, anti-Asian sentiment, scapegoating, 
        and ethnic or religious intolerance;
            (4) calls on Federal law enforcement officials, working 
        with State and local agencies--
                    (A) to expeditiously investigate and document all 
                credible reports of hate crimes, harassment, bullying, 
                and threats against the Asian-American and Pacific-
                Islander communities in the United States;
                    (B) to expand collection of data and public 
                reporting to document the rise in the incidence of hate 
                crimes relating to COVID-19; and
                    (C) to hold the perpetrators of those crimes, 
                incidents, or threats accountable and bring such 
                perpetrators to justice, including through 
                investigation and prosecution;
            (5) calls on the Attorney General to work with State and 
        local agencies and Asian-American and Pacific-Islander 
        community-based organizations to prevent discrimination, and 
        expand culturally competent and linguistically appropriate 
        education campaigns on public reporting of hate crimes;
            (6) calls on the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in 
        coordination with the COVID-19 Health Equity Task Force and 
        Asian-American and Pacific-Islander community-based 
        organizations, to issue guidance describing best practices to 
        mitigate racially discriminatory language in describing the 
        COVID-19 pandemic; and
            (7) recommits the United States to serving as a model for 
        the world in building a more inclusive, diverse, and tolerant 
        society--
                    (A) by prioritizing language access and inclusivity 
                in communication practices; and
                    (B) by combating misinformation and discrimination 
                that puts Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders at 
                risk.
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