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[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 481 Agreed to Senate (ATS)]

<DOC>

114th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 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.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 26, 2016

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

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION

 
  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.

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 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.
                                 <all>
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