[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 86 (Thursday, May 19, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Page S2605]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  COMMISSION TO STUDY THE POTENTIAL CREATION OF A NATIONAL MUSEUM OF 
             ASIAN PACIFIC AMERICAN HISTORY AND CULTURE ACT

  Ms. HIRONO. Mr. President, I thank the majority leader for his words 
and his very strong support of the Asian-American Pacific Islander 
community and his support for this bill that I am calling forth today.
  As we celebrate Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, we have an 
opportunity to pass meaningful legislation to establish a Commission to 
study the creation of a National Museum of Asian Pacific American 
History and Culture.
  This bill is straightforward. It establishes an eight-person 
Commission, appointed equally by House and Senate majority and minority 
leadership. The Commission will be composed of individuals with 
expertise in the research, study, and promotion of Asian-American 
Pacific Islander history.
  This Commission will submit a report to Congress, at which point we 
should act. Asian and Pacific Islander American communities have made 
significant contributions to American life, but despite these 
undeniable contributions, our communities have largely been excluded or 
erased from American history. If not invisible, API groups are often 
pejoratively depicted as foreigners, always ``the other,'' instead of 
people who have lived in and positively contributed to this country for 
generations.
  These narratives have fueled xenophobia and racism, contributing to 
decades of racism, racist laws, and discrimination--and, of course, 
most recently led to the rise in attacks in hate-related incidents 
against members of our communities.
  A National Museum of Asian Pacific American History and Culture would 
help combat these harmful narratives by sharing API history on an 
unprecedented scale, and we should consider whether or not such a 
museum should be feasible.
  With this bill, we can demonstrate our commitment to showcasing the 
significant contributions of the API community to our country's fabric. 
I think it is really important for our country to better understand how 
the Chinese Exclusion Act, Executive Order No. 9066, which led to the 
incarceration of 120,000 Japanese Americans during World War II and 
decades of racial laws, contribute to the API experience today.
  The establishment of this kind of museum should not be controversial, 
and it has been done before with regard to the National Museum of 
African American History and Culture, the National Museum of the 
American the Latino. These museums represent progress. They help us 
better understand one another and our shared history as Americans.
  Now we have a chance to build on this progress by creating a 
Commission to study a similar museum to highlight the history and 
legacy of the API individuals and communities in this country, and, of 
course, this bill represents a significant step toward an America that 
celebrates and encourages the rich diversity of our people.
  With that, Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee 
on Energy and Natural Resources be discharged from further 
consideration of H.R. 3525 and that the Senate proceed to its immediate 
consideration.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (H.R. 3525) to establish the Commission to Study the 
     Potential Creation of a National Museum of Asian Pacific 
     American History and Culture, and for other purposes.

  There being no objection, the committee was discharged, and the 
Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
  Ms. HIRONO. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be 
considered read a third time and passed and that the motion to 
reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The bill (H.R. 3525) was ordered to a third reading, was read the 
third time, and passed.

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