[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 84 (Thursday, May 26, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3297-S3298]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  SENATE RESOLUTION 481--RECOGNIZING THE SIGNIFICANCE OF MAY 2016 AS 
   ASIAN/PACIFIC AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH AND AS AN IMPORTANT TIME TO 
CELEBRATE THE SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTIONS OF ASIAN AMERICANS AND PACIFIC 
             ISLANDERS TO THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES

  Ms. HIRONO (for herself, Mr. Reid, Mr. Franken, Mr. Casey, Mrs. 
Murray, Mr. Kirk, Mr. Menendez, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Schatz, Mr. Markey, 
Ms. Klobuchar, Ms. Cantwell, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Brown, Mr. Kaine, Mr. 
Durbin, Mr. Wyden, Mr. Heller, Mr. Gardner, Mr. Bennet, Ms. Murkowski, 
Mr. Booker, Mr. Schumer, Ms. Warren, and Mr. Merkley) submitted the 
following resolution; which was considered and agreed to:

                              S. Res. 481

       Whereas the people of the United States join 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 at a faster rate than any other 
     racial or ethnic group in the United States during the last 
     decade, surging nearly 46 percent between 2000 and 2010, a 
     growth rate that is 4 times the rate of the total population 
     of the United States;
       Whereas, according to the 2010 decennial census, there are 
     approximately 17,300,000 residents of the United States who 
     identify themselves 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 section 102 of title 36, United States Code, 
     officially designates May as Asian/Pacific American Heritage 
     Month and requests that the President issue an annual 
     proclamation calling on the people of the United States to 
     observe Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month with 
     appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities;
       Whereas Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, such as 
     Daniel K. Inouye, a Medal of Honor and Presidential Medal of 
     Freedom recipient who as President Pro Tempore of the Senate 
     was the highest-ranking Asian American government official in 
     United States history, Dalip Singh Saund, the first Asian 
     American elected to serve in Congress, Patsy T. Mink, the 
     first woman of color and the first Asian American woman to be 
     elected to Congress, Hiram L. Fong, the first Asian American 
     Senator, Daniel K. Akaka, the first Senator of Native 
     Hawaiian ancestry, Norman Y. Mineta, the first Asian American 
     member of a presidential cabinet, Elaine L. Chao, the first 
     Asian American woman member of a presidential cabinet, Mee 
     Moua, the first Hmong American elected to a State 
     legislature, and others have made significant contributions 
     in both the Government and military of the United States;
       Whereas the year 2016 marks several important milestones 
     for the Asian American and Pacific Islander community, 
     including--
       (1) the 115th anniversary of the arrival of Peter Ryu, the 
     first Korean immigrant in the United States;
       (2) the 95th anniversary of the first premier in a United 
     States film of an Asian American woman, Anna May Wong, in 
     ``Bits of Life'';
       (3) the 70th anniversary of the passage of the amendments 
     made by the Act of July 2, 1946 (commonly known as the 
     ``Luce-Cellar Act of 1946'') (60 Stat. 416, chapter 534), 
     which allowed Filipinos and Indians to immigrate to the 
     United States and become naturalized United States citizens;
       (4) the 70th anniversary of the passage of the First 
     Supplemental Surplus Appropriation Rescission Act of 1946 (60 
     Stat. 6, chapter 30), which stripped military benefits from 
     Filipino World War II veterans in the service of the United 
     States Armed Forces;
       (5) the 60th anniversary of the election to the House of 
     Representatives of Dalip Singh Saund, the first Asian 
     American, first Indian American, and first Sikh American 
     elected to Congress;
       (6) the 40th anniversary of the election to the Senate of 
     Dr. Samuel Ichiye Hayakawa, the first Asian American elected 
     to the Senate from a mainland State;
       (7) the 40th anniversary of Presidential Proclamation 4417, 
     dated February 19, 1976 (41 Fed. Reg. 7741), in which 
     President Gerald Ford formally rescinded Executive Order 9066 
     (7 Fed. Reg. 1407; relating to authorizing the Secretary of 
     War to prescribe military areas) and condemned the 
     incarceration of United States citizens and lawful permanent 
     residents of Japanese ancestry during World War II;
       (8) the 40th anniversary of the completion of the double-
     hulled voyaging canoe, Hokule'a, marking the first 
     traditional Polynesian voyaging canoe built in Hawaii in over 
     600 years;
       (9) the 30th anniversary of the granting of United States 
     citizenship to the Chamorros and Carolinians of the Northern 
     Mariana Islands; and
       (10) the 20th anniversary of the election as the Governor 
     of the State of Washington of Gary Locke, the first Asian 
     American elected as a Governor of a mainland State;
       Whereas, in 2016, family members of Filipino World War II 
     veterans became eligible to apply for immigration benefits to 
     come to the United States to be reunited with their aging 
     Filipino veteran family members who are United States 
     citizens and lawful permanent residents;
       Whereas, in 2016, 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 51 Members, including 13 Members of Asian or 
     Pacific Islander descent;
       Whereas, in 2016, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders are 
     serving in State and territorial legislatures across the 
     United States in record numbers, including the States of 
     Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, 
     Hawaii, Idaho, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, 
     New

[[Page S3298]]

     Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, 
     Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, 
     Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and the territories of 
     American Samoa, Guam, and the Commonwealth of the Northern 
     Mariana Islands;
       Whereas the number of Federal judges who are Asian 
     Americans or Pacific Islanders doubled between 2001 and 2008 
     and more than tripled between 2009 and 2015, 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 2016 as Asian/
     Pacific American Heritage Month and 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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