Members of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus are pictured in the above photo.
Asian American Sens. Kamala Harris (D-CA), Tammy Duckworth, (D-IL) Mazie Hirono, (D-HO) Rep. Grace Meng (D-NY) and other elected officials have introduced a joint resolution condemning racism and xenophobia against Chinese Americans and Asian American Pacific Islanders.
“[Resolved, that the Senate] condemns all manifestations or expressions of racism, xenophobia, discrimination, anti-Asian sentiment, scapegoating, and ethnic or religious intolerance;” the resolution stated.
Harris, Duckworth and Hirono announced the intention to submit the resolution last month. The joint resolution highlighted Asian impact to the economy, businesses and American culture.
It also stated that since January, there has been a “dramatic increase” in reported hate crimes and harassment toward those of Asian heritage.
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The resolution highlighted incidents in which two children and two adults were stabbed in Midland, Texas, attacks against a couple in Philadelphia and vandalism of businesses owned by Asian Americans.
“Inflammatory and racist rhetoric from officials at the highest level of our government has contributed to a disturbing rise in hate-crimes targeting Asian Americans,” Hirono told Fox News.
If passed, the resolution would also urge public officials across the nation to denounce anti-Asian sentiments, document and investigate reports of discrimination, collect data and promote language inclusion in governmental communication.
Some lawmakers on the local level are already acting on addressing the issues highlighted in the proposal.
“One of the first things we knew we had to do was to educate our own colleagues in the House and the Senate because I felt that they were not aware of how extensive the [anti-Asian] hate crimes and incidents have gotten,” U.S. Rep. Judy Chu (D-27th District) stated the April 27 Facebook Live event, according to Asian Journal.
Chu, chairwoman of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, praised the Senate resolution and told Asian Journal that she has spoken with other members of Congress to abandon anti-Asian language and promote accurate information on the virus.
The article also highlights U.S. Rep. Don Beyer’s (D-VA) No Hate Act, which seeks to correct “deficiency in the FBI hate crime reporting” by providing grants for reporting crimes and funding for community-service based programs.
Another bill, co-introduced by U.S. Rep T.J. Cox, (D-21st District of CA) a Filipino and Chinese American lawmaker, recommends the Department of Health and Human Services to “carry out a national awareness campaign to increase factual awareness and knowledge of COVID-19.” This includes denouncing and finding ways to counter anti-Asian sentiments.
“During the COVID-19 pandemic, getting accurate, timely information to the public isn’t just helpful; it’s a matter of life and death. Our institutions have struggled to meet this challenge, so it’s vital that we boost our awareness and education efforts, especially before we -when it is safe to do so – reopen our country,” Cox told The Hanford Sentinel. “That way we can combat misinformation and stereotypes that endanger lives and slow down this nation’s recovery.”
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