[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 74 (Thursday, May 23, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Page S3878]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
ASIAN/PACIFIC AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Judiciary
Committee be discharged from further consideration of S. Res. 129 and
the Senate proceed to its consideration.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The clerk
will report the resolution by title.
The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:
A resolution (S. Res. 129) recognizing the significance of
May 2013 as Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month as an
important time to celebrate the significant contributions of
Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders to the history of the
United States.
There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the
resolution.
Mr. REID. I ask unanimous consent the resolution be agreed to, the
Hirono amendment to the preamble be agreed to, the preamble, as
amended, be agreed to, and the motion to reconsider be laid on the
table, with no intervening action or debate.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The resolution (S. Res. 129) was agreed to.
The amendment (No. 1143) was agreed to, as follows:
In the fifth whereas clause of the preamble, strike
``nearly 6 percent'' and insert ``approximately 5.5 percent
and 0.4 percent, respectively,''.
The preamble, as amended, was agreed to.
The resolution, with its preamble, as amended, reads as follows:
S. Res. 129
Whereas the United States joins together each May to pay
tribute to the contributions of generations of Asian
Americans and Pacific Islanders who have enriched the history
of the United States;
Whereas the history of Asian Americans and Pacific
Islanders in the United States is inextricably tied to the
story of the United States;
Whereas the Asian-American and Pacific Islander community
is an inherently diverse population comprised of more than 45
distinct ethnicities and more than 100 language dialects;
Whereas, according to the Bureau of the Census, the Asian-
American population grew faster than any other racial or
ethnic group in the United States during the last decade,
surging nearly 46 percent between 2000 and 2010, which is a
growth rate 4 times faster than that of the total population
of the United States;
Whereas the 2010 decennial census estimated that there are
approximately 17,300,000 residents of the United States who
identify as Asian and approximately 1,200,000 residents of
the United States who identify themselves as Native Hawaiian
or other Pacific Islander, making up approximately 5.5
percent and 0.4 percent, respectively, of the total
population of the United States;
Whereas the month of May was selected for Asian/Pacific
American Heritage Month because the first immigrants from
Japan arrived in the United States on May 7, 1843, and the
first transcontinental railroad was completed on May 10,
1869, with substantial contributions from immigrants from
China;
Whereas 2013 marks 70 years since the repeal of the Act of
May 5, 1892 (27 Stat. 25, chapter 60) (commonly known as the
``Geary Act'' or the ``Chinese Exclusion Act''), and 25 years
since the passage of the Civil Liberties Act of 1988 (50
U.S.C. App. 1989b et seq.) that granted reparations to
Japanese Americans interned during World War II, both cases
in which Congress acted to address discriminatory laws that
targeted people of Asian descent;
Whereas section 102 of title 36, United States Code,
officially designates May as Asian/Pacific American Heritage
Month and requests the President to issue an annual
proclamation calling on the people of the United States to
observe the month with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and
activities;
Whereas, in 2013, the Congressional Asian Pacific American
Caucus, a bicameral caucus of Members of Congress advocating
on behalf of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, is
composed of 40 Members, including 13 Members of Asian or
Pacific Islander descent;
Whereas, in 2013, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders are
serving in State legislatures across the United States in
record numbers, including in the States of Alaska, Arizona,
California, Connecticut, Colorado, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho,
Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah,
Vermont, Virginia, and Washington;
Whereas the number of Federal judges who are Asian
Americans or Pacific Islanders more than doubled between 2009
and 2013, reflecting a commitment to diversity in the Federal
judiciary that has resulted in the confirmations of high
caliber Asian-American and Pacific Islander judicial
nominees;
Whereas there remains much to be done to ensure that Asian
Americans and Pacific Islanders have access to resources and
a voice in the Government of the United States and continue
to advance in the political landscape of the United States;
and
Whereas celebrating Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month
provides the people of the United States with an opportunity
to recognize the achievements, contributions, and history of
Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, and to appreciate the
challenges faced by Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders:
Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate--
(1) recognizes the significance of May 2013 as Asian/
Pacific American Heritage Month as an important time to
celebrate the significant contributions of Asian Americans
and Pacific Islanders to the history of the United States;
and
(2) recognizes that the Asian-American and Pacific Islander
community enhances the rich diversity of and strengthens the
United States.
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