Leaders of Chinese American organizations from across the United States gathered in Washington to discuss, for the first time, the "Chinese Exclusion Act" enacted by the U.S. Congress in 1882, with the hope of urging Congress to pass a bill to formally apologize to the Chinese community.
Representatives from prominent Chinese American organizations, including the National Council of Chinese Americans, the Organization of Chinese Americans, the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association, the Chinese American Citizens Alliance, and the Chinese American Historical Society, attended the meeting.
The "Chinese Exclusion Act" is the only immigration exclusion law in U.S. history that targeted a specific ethnic group. This legislation was passed in 1882 and was not repealed until December 17, 1943. The act, along with other discriminatory laws, prohibited Chinese people from owning real estate in the United States, forbade intermarriage between Chinese and white people, banned the immigration of Chinese wives and children, prohibited Chinese from holding government positions, and prevented Chinese from testifying against white people in court, among other restrictions.
Xue Haipei, Chairman of the National Council of Chinese Americans, who presided over the meeting, told reporters that last year, the California State Legislature and the San Francisco Board of Supervisors passed resolutions expressing apologies to the Chinese American community for the Chinese Exclusion Act. However, since it was the U.S. Congress that passed the "Chinese Exclusion Act," this marks the first time that Chinese American organizations have formally joined forces at the national level to demand that Congress pass a bill to apologize to the Chinese people.
Xue Haipei stated that early May of this year marks the 129th anniversary of the passage of the "Chinese Exclusion Act." They have decided to use this as an opportunity to make the promotion of a congressional apology bill their top priority for this year and next. Currently, more than 100 Chinese American groups and thousands of individuals have co-signed a "petition" to the federal government. This "petition" will be submitted to President Obama and members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives in the near future. Subsequently, related lobbying efforts and the drafting of the bill will also commence.
In addition to urging Congress to pass an apology bill, the "petition" also suggests designating December 17, the day the "Chinese Exclusion Act" was repealed, as "National Harmony Day." The "petition" states that the United States has a responsibility to recognize past injustices, address these issues and their consequences, and prevent similar injustices from occurring.
The "petition" notes that in recent years, countries around the world, including the United States, have begun to issue formal apologies for historical discrimination against minorities. For example, in 1988, the U.S. government apologized to Japanese Americans for its "World War II internment camp" policy and provided compensation of $20,000 to each victim and their family. In 2008, the U.S. government formally apologized to African Americans for the history of slavery. In 2006, the Canadian government formally apologized to Chinese Canadians for its historical exclusion policies and the "head tax" imposed on Chinese immigrants.
Xue Haipei believes that as the fourth-largest minority group in the United States with a population of 4 million, Chinese Americans cannot be ignored by members of Congress or the President. Furthermore, as a nation founded on the principles of "human rights and freedom," the United States has no reason to refuse to redress such a blatant case of human rights violations that lasted for more than 60 years. Once passed, it will restore confidence in the American founding belief that "all men are created equal" and demonstrate the maturity of the American legal system. He expressed confidence in pushing for the passage of the apology bill in the next Congress, as the current Congress will end its term at the end of this year.
