[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 150 (Monday, September 18, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4556-S4557]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

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 SENATE RESOLUTION 346--HONORING THE THAI-AMERICAN GARMENT WORKERS WHO 
OPENED THE COUNTRY'S EYES TO SWEATSHOP CONDITIONS IN THE UNITED STATES 
   AND, AGAINST ALL ODDS, EXPANDED RIGHTS FOR IMMIGRANT WORKERS AND 
 SURVIVORS OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING WHILE HOLDING CORPORATIONS RESPONSIBLE 
           FOR THE CONDITIONS IN WHICH THEIR CLOTHES ARE MADE

  Ms. DUCKWORTH (for herself, Mr. Padilla, and Mrs. Feinstein) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions:

                              S. Res. 346

       Whereas Thai garment workers were forced to work behind 
     barbed wire and under armed guard in an apartment complex in 
     El Monte, California, sewing garments for 16 to 18 hours a 
     day, 7 days a week under the threat of harm to themselves and 
     their families in Thailand;
       Whereas the workers were trafficked into the United States, 
     held against their will, had their passports taken from them, 
     and were denied contact with the outside world until August 
     2, 1995, when a multiagency law enforcement raid exposed 
     their conditions of involuntary servitude;
       Whereas the workers were threatened with deportation until 
     community advocates intervened and helped the workers find 
     freedom, shelter, new jobs, and the chance to rebuild their 
     lives in the United States;
       Whereas the workers filed a landmark lawsuit against their 
     captors and against the companies they were sewing for, which 
     was the first Federal lawsuit of its kind, transformed the 
     garment industry, and launched anti-sweatshop legislation and 
     campaigns across the country and around the world that 
     reverberate to this day;

[[Page S4557]]

       Whereas advocates fought for the workers to stay in the 
     United States and pioneered the use of S visas, in 
     partnership with Federal prosecutors, which led to the 
     creation of T and U visas to protect workers who serve as 
     material witnesses to come forward and report abuse and 
     exploitation without fear of immigration-based retaliation;
       Whereas the workers have inspired countless individuals, 
     and their story has been documented in books, an animated 
     short, museums, including the National Museum of American 
     History, and is taught in high school, college, and law 
     school curricula;
       Whereas the workers freed from the El Monte sweatshop went 
     on to contribute in invaluable ways to the United States as 
     activists, spokespersons, small business owners, health care 
     professionals, service providers, and more; and
       Whereas the workers are now inducted into the United States 
     Department of Labor's Hall of Honor, taking their rightful 
     place in the labor history of the United States for their 
     courage, resilience, and groundbreaking efforts: Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) honors the Thai garment workers freed from the El Monte 
     sweatshop for their courage, persistence, and resilience;
       (2) recognizes the many legal, cultural, and policy changes 
     that have resulted from the El Monte sweatshop case;
       (3) recognizes the individuals that continue to fight 
     against forced labor and human trafficking, for corporate 
     accountability, and for an end to exploitative working 
     conditions; and
       (4) respectfully requests that the Secretary of the Senate 
     transmit--
       (A) an enrolled copy of this resolution to the Director of 
     the National Museum of American History; and
       (B) 5 copies of this resolution to the Secretary of Labor.

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