[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 6]
[Senate]
[Pages 8540-8541]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




  SENATE RESOLUTION 183--RECOGNIZING THE SIGNIFICANCE OF MAY 2017 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

  Mr. SCHUMER (for Ms. HIRONO (for herself, Ms. Duckworth, Ms. Harris, 
Ms. Murkowski, Ms. Cantwell, Mr. Booker, Mr. Kaine, Ms. Cortez Masto, 
Mr. Franken, Mr. Bennet, Mr. Markey, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. Schatz, Mr. 
Menendez, Mr. Cardin, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Coons, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Merkley, 
Ms. Klobuchar, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Gardner, Mr. Casey, and Mr. Heller)) 
submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to:

                              S. Res. 183

       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 a 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 for 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 the history of the United States, 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 Armed 
     Forces of the United States;
       Whereas 2017 marks several important milestones for the 
     Asian American and Pacific Islander community, including--
       (1) the 155th anniversary of the date of enactment of the 
     Act of July 1, 1862 (12 Stat. 489, chapter 120), which 
     promoted the construction of the transcontinental railroad;
       (2) the 135th anniversary of the date of enactment of the 
     Act entitled ``An Act to execute certain treaty stipulations 
     relating to

[[Page 8541]]

     Chinese'', approved May 6, 1882 (22 Stat. 58, chapter 126);
       (3) the 105th anniversary of the first planting of a cherry 
     tree from Japan in Washington, DC;
       (4) the 75th anniversary of the signing of Executive Order 
     9066 (7 Fed. Reg. 1407; relating to authorizing the Secretary 
     of War to prescribe military areas), which authorized the 
     internment of Japanese-Americans; and
       (5) the 25th anniversary of the formal establishment of 
     Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month;

       Whereas, in 2017, the Polynesian Voyaging Society will 
     complete the final leg of its Malama Honua Worldwide Voyage 
     after 4 years of sailing the world and teaching traditional 
     wayfinding practices, along with the importance of caring for 
     the land and sea;
       Whereas, in 2017, 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 50 Members, including 17 Members of Asian or 
     Pacific Islander descent;
       Whereas, in 2017, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders are 
     serving in State and territorial legislatures across the 
     United States in record numbers, including in--
       (1) the States of Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, 
     Connecticut, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Maryland, Massachusetts, 
     Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, 
     North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, 
     Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and West 
     Virginia; and
       (2) 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 2016, reflecting a 
     commitment to diversity in the Federal judiciary that has 
     resulted in the confirmation 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 2017 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 strengthens, and enhances the rich diversity of, 
     the United States.

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