IN THE COUNTY LEGISLATURE OF JACKSON COUNTY, MISSOURI
Title
A RESOLUTION recognizing May 2023 as Asian Pacific American Heritage Month in Jackson County.
Intro
RESOLUTION NO. 21269, May 9, 2023
INTRODUCED BY Manuel Abarca IV, County Legislator
Body
WHEREAS, section 102 of title 36, United States Code, officially designates May as Asian Pacific American Heritage Month and requests the President to issue an annual proclamation calling on the people of the United States to observe the month with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities; and,
WHEREAS, the month of May was chosen to commemorate the arrival of the first Japanese immigrants in the United States on May 7, 1843, and to mark the anniversary of the completion of the transcontinental railroad on May 10, 1869, given that the majority of the workers who laid the tracks were Chinese immigrants; and,
WHEREAS, according to the Pew Research Center, the Asian American population in the U.S. grew 81 percent between 2000 and 2019; and,
WHEREAS, the COVID-19 pandemic brought a disturbing trend with a significant surge in reported anti-Asian hate crimes, with the FBI hate crime statistics documenting a 70 percent increase in reports of anti-Asian hate crimes; and,
WHEREAS, Asian Pacific American individuals who are also female, non-binary, LGBTQIA+, and/or elderly experience hate incidents that target them for more than one of their identities; and,
WHEREAS, celebrating Asian Pacific American Heritage Month provides the people of the County an opportunity to recognize the achievements, contributions, and history of, and to understand the challenges faced by, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders; now therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the County Legislature of Jackson County, Missouri, that the Legislature recognizes the significance of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month as an important time to celebrate the significant contributions of Asian-Americans and Pacific Islanders to the history of the Uni...
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