[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 7 (Wednesday, January 28, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S317-S318]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
RECOGNIZING PAUL M. IGASAKI, FORMER VICE CHAIR, U.S. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT
OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I recognize Paul Igasaki, a Chicago
native, for his contributions to the important work of advancing our
civil rights. Mr. Igasaki has dedicated his entire professional career
to ensuring justice for the powerless in our society who are often
neglected and ignored.
In his most recent years of public service as a commissioner, vice
chair, and acting chair of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission, EEOC, Mr. Igasaki not only enforced laws that helped
prevent employment discrimination practices, he himself broke the glass
ceiling as the first Asian American appointed to the high office.
Mr. Igasaki was successful in reducing overwhelming case backlog that
was impairing the effective functioning of the agency. His
recommendations led to the development of the National Enforcement Plan
and the Priority Charge Handling Program, which have reduced the EEOC
case inventory by over 70 percent. These structural changes have
allowed the agency to focus on more serious cases where the EEOC's
involvement can make a difference to the lives of American workers.
Similarly, Mr. Igasaki cochaired an EEOC task force that recommended
focused litigation strategy, placement of attorneys in area offices,
and greater cooperation between attorneys and investigators in agency,
which have led to increased law enforcement effectiveness of the
agency.
One of his most notable accomplishments during his term on the EEOC
was his role in guiding the settlement of the Mitsubishi Motors of
America case--the largest case involving sexual harassment at the
workplace. His success with this case was influential in moving the
Japanese government to implement gender discrimination and sexual
harassment enforcement laws for their own country.
In the aftermath of the September 11th terrorist attacks, Mr. Igasaki
brought valuable perspectives from his personal experiences as a
Japanese American to the EEOC's efforts to combat unfair backlash and
scapegoating of Arab Americans, South Asian Americans, Muslim or Sikh
Americans and others who were wrongly targeted by hate and
discrimination.
Mr. Igasaki mother's family owned a small truck farm near San Diego.
Like thousands of other Japanese Americans, Mr. Igasaki's grandparents
had been in the United States for almost a half century, and like most
immigrants
[[Page S318]]
they were proud and loyal Americans. Yet, following the devastating
attacks at Pearl Harbor, Mr. Igasaki's family was subject to harassment
around town and at school. One day, the FBI showed up at their home,
and without warning, warrant or explanation, they took his grandfather
into custody. His family would not know where he was, what his
condition was or why he had been taken for several months. They relied
on community rumor, knowing that other Japanese Americans had been
arrested for no apparent reason.
When our government issued the relocation orders for Japanese
Americans, Mr. Igasaki's family had two weeks to give up the farm and
nearly all of their property. Only in the horse stall that the family
shared in the relocation center at Santa Anita Racetrack did they find
out that Mr. Igasaki's grandfather was arrested because he was the
secretary of the local Celery Growers Association and because he had
taken some notes of their meetings in Japanese. Their family eventually
reunited when they were sent to a more permanent camp in Arizona where
they were held for the duration of World War II.
Having experienced the pain and injustice of such treatment based on
no reason other than their ethnic ancestry, Mr. Igasaki's became a
passionate voice of conscience in the months following the September
11th attacks. His voice comforted all Americans who faced
discrimination at the workplace because of their ancestry or
appearance, and the work of the EEOC was that much more important
because of Mr. Igasaki's presence.
His voice has also been an important one in the development of the
national Asian American civil rights movement. Mr. Igasaki has served
as the Washington, DC, representative of the Japanese American Citizens
League, executive director of the Asian Law Caucus, and executive
director of the City of Chicago's Commission on Asian American Affairs.
A more detailed list of Mr. Igasaki's accomplishments is described in
a resolution that the national board of the Japanese American Citizens
League recently adopted. I ask unanimous consent that this resolution
be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
Resolution in Appreciation of and Commending Paul M. Igasaki for His
Service on the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
Whereas, Paul M. Igasaki served our nation on the Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) with distinction for
eight years from 1994 to 2002;
Whereas, Mr. Igasaki was initially nominated by President
Clinton and confirmed by the United States Senate in 1994,
served as Acting Chairman from January to October 1998 and
was confirmed for a second term as Vice Chair on October 21,
1998;
Whereas, Mr. Igasaki was the first Asian Pacific American
to serve in these positions at the EEOC;
Whereas, Mr. Igasaki was the architect of the EEOC's
strategy for handling job discrimination charges more
efficiently which resulted in the prosecution of egregious
cases of discrimination and a reduction in charge inventory
by more than 50%;
Whereas, Mr. Igasaki sought support for and the approval of
the EEOC's historic FY 1999 budget increase for this
important but under-funded agency;
Whereas, Mr. Igasaki endeavored to ensure equal employment
opportunities through his work as a Commissioner at the EEOC
as well as by promoting diversity in hiring at all levels of
the agency--in the Washington, DC headquarters and in the
regional offices;
Whereas, Mr. Igasaki's outreach to historically underserved
communities and his understanding of the harm of ethnic
profiling made him an invaluable resource at the EEOC,
promoting an environment which allowed those affected by
employment discrimination in the aftermath of the horrific
attacks on 9/11 to report their cases;
Whereas, Mr. Igasaki was recommended for another term at
the EEOC by Senate Democratic Leader Tom Daschle in May 2002;
Whereas, despite Mr. Igasaki's notable achievements and
years of dedicated service as a committed and competent
public servant at the EEOC, the White House declined to
nominate him for another term;
Whereas, failing to be renominated, Mr. Igasaki's term
expired, and he left the EEOC at the end of 2002;
Whereas, Mr. Igasaki has a long and distinguished track-
record of working on important civil rights issues through
such organizations as the Asian Law Caucus, the City of
Chicago's Human Relations Commission, the Chicago Commission
on Asian American Affairs and the American Bar Association;
Whereas, Mr. Igasaki has also been a long-time member of
the JACL, having served as the President of the Chicago
chapter and as the Washington, DC Representative where he
worked on the Civil Rights Act, immigration reform and was a
crucial voice in implementing the Civil Liberties Act of 1988
and the Office of Redress Administration;
Whereas, Mr. Igasaki has always maintained a staunch
commitment to and involvement in the Asian Pacific American
community and the issues facing our community;
Whereas, Mr. Igasaki has received numerous professional and
personal accolades for his achievements;
Therefore be it resolved that the National Board of the
Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) on behalf of the
entire organization highly commends Paul M. Igasaki for his
years of dedicated service at the Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission and extends our deepest gratitude to
him for his work on behalf of all Americans to combat
discrimination in the workplace;
Be it further resolved that the Japanese American Citizens
League recognizes and appreciates the considerable
contributions made by Paul M. Igasaki as an advocate for
civil rights and role model for the Asian Pacific American
community;
Be it further resolved that the Japanese American Citizens
League thanks Paul M. Igasaki for his tireless efforts to
promote and defend civil rights, civil liberties and equality
before the law.
Mr. DURBIN. I urge my colleagues to join me in recognizing the
important achievements of Mr. Paul Igasaki, and wishing him well in his
future efforts to advance civil rights of all Americans.
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