Polynesians. and Siamese. These persons have all lived in the United States for more than 25 years. They have entered into our society. they pay taxes. they are lawabiding and selfsupportingbut they cannot obtain the coveted privilege of becoming naturalized as fullfledged American citizens. Their sons. native born American citizens. volunteered by the thousands in World War II and fought with unsurpassed bravery. skill. and patriotic devotion. It has been a travesty on justice that their fathers and mothers who brought them up to be such exemplary American citizens have heretofore been ineligible for naturalization solely because of their race. I know the passage of this joint resolution will make glad their hearts and those of their children. Mr. Speaker. I still hope that before the Congress adjourns there may be some way to get the other half of this job donethe removal of racial discrimination from our immigration laws also. As long as this needless insult. for example. to Koreans. remains on our statute books. we are sending our soldiers into that land to fight with one hand tied behind their backs. or at least without the full moral armament they deserve and which it is our business to provide them. No other act gives so much damaging propaganda material to our Communist enemies. as the remnants of the old exclusion laws. Let us be done with them once and for all by making the immigration quotas for the remaining 12 excluded areas available to persons born in those areas of races indigenous to them. At the very most. only 1.285 more persons of Asian races could be admitted per year. For us it costs almost nothing. to them it is the difference between being treated as less than human beings and as being recognized and officially treated as equal human beings.
Keywords matched
naturalization immigration naturalized