Speech #1050100708

Representative MORAN. described on the floor last week the story of a constituent who received a subpoena for the telephone records of his wife from the House Committee on Government Reform and Oversight just because she has a Chinese surname. The United States has a long. sordid history of discrimination against Asian and Pacific IslanderAmericans. The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 limited the number of Chinese immigrants admitted into the United States. It was the first and only immigration law in American history that targeted a specific nationality and was passed due to growing antiChinese sentiment created by white laborers competing for jobs. It wasnt repealed until 1943. The Gentlemens Agreement of 1908 prohibited Japanese immigration. and the National Origins Quota System limited the number of immigrants from Asian nations. At the beginning of our Nation. the Founders limited the eligibility for citizenship to free white persons only. In the early 1900s. laws restricting citizenship led to Asian immigrants being Pacific Americans found an increase of 17 percent of antiAsian incidents reported for 1996 from the previous year. This is particularly disturbing since violent crimes on the whole for 1996 decreased by 7 percent. In recent months. we have seen incidents of racially motivated violence and harassment toward Asian and Pacific IslanderAmericans to discourage their political participation.