An update on the effort to pass
House Resolution 121, which calls upon the government of Japan to apologize for its sexual slavery of over 200,000 girls and women ("comfort women") during World War II... At the moment, I'm told there is a great deal of momentum on the Hill in support of HR121. On June 26th, the resolution passed the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, 39-2. But the fight is not over yet. The House vote hasn't been scheduled, and HR121 has to compete with many other bills and resolutions for attention. While all the support from House leaders is great, this won't be a true victory until the resolution has passed. The survivors of these crimes are growing older, and fewer, and their stories are slowly being lost to time. It's important that their experiences are acknowledged, and the United States makes a stand against war crimes, government-sanctioned trafficking, rape, torture and brutality. Here are action steps that you can take, according to Annabel Park (possibly the hardest-working woman in this whole campaign):
1. Organize or participate in a Fax Campaign calling on the House leadership to schedule the vote:
Speaker Nancy Pelosi (CA-8)
Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (MD-5)
Minority Leader John Boehner (OH-8)
2. A Fax campaign to thanking and then requesting cosponsorship of the resolution from member of the Foreign Affairs committee who voted "Yes" during the markup but are not yet cosponsors. If you are in their district or even state, please fax them a letter. If you know anyone who is in their state or district, please contact them. If you get a definitive answer one or another, please let me know so that we don't waste our and their time and resources. Let's make this a coordinated event.
Rep Russ Carnahan (D-MO)
Rep Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ)
Rep Ron Klein (D-FL)
Rep Brad Miller (D-NC)
Rep Robert Wexler (D-FL)
Rep J. Gresham Barrett (R-SC)
Rep Gus Bilirakis (R-FL)
Rep John Boozman (R-AR)
Rep Steve Chabot (R-OH)
Rep Jeff Flake (R-AZ)
Rep Jeff Fortenberry (R-NE)
Rep Luis Fortuno (R-PR)
Rep Elton Gallegly (R-CA)
Rep Robert Inglis (R-SC)
Rep Donald Manzullo (R-IL)
Rep Ted Poe (R-TX)
Rep Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA)
Rep Joe Wilson (R-SC)
3. A Fax Campaign to increase support from Republicans. Right now, we have 25 Republican cosponsors. Let's do better. Let's start with the above list from (2) and then expand. We will post a target list of Republicans on our website by tomorrow.
For their contact information, go to: Congress.org. We will also post all the details of this action plan including contact information and sample letters by tomorrow morning. Please keep checking the website for updates. It's going through some updates and changes in the next couple of days.
4. New York and DC teams will hold a lobby day on Thursday, July 12th. Please try to join us. We will meet around 10am at the Rayburn building. This is not open to the press. Please email or call me for more information: annnabelpark@mac.com/703-944-9661
5. DC team will be lobbying nearly everyday. Our ongoing target list includes Reps from FL, NC and CO where there have been substantial letter-writing and petitions from local chapters. Let us know if we should focus on any other states and districts.
As you can see, there is still much to do. For more information on the campaign, or how you can get involved, visit
Support121.org. For those of you in Southern California, there's a reception/fundraiser on Friday night with
Yong Soo Lee, a former "comfort woman," who will share her stories of pain and hope. Friday, July 12th, 6:30pm at the JJ Grand Hotel. The event is free and open to the public, but donations toward the cause are greatly appreciated. Here are all the details I've got:
A night with Yong Soo Lee (former "Comfort Woman") to support passage of H.Res.121
Fundraiser/Reception
Yong Soo Lee, a former "Comfort Woman" who had been lured into one of the most extensive sexual trafficking in the 20th century by Japanese government will be with us to share her stories of pain and hope...
Join us to honor her life and courage to end all organized sexual violence against women and social injustice.
Place:
JJ Grand Hotel
620 S. Harvard Bl.
Los Angeles, CA 90005
Time: Friday, July 13th. 6:30pm
Contact: Phyllis Kim 213-247-5390 gipunuri@yahoo.com
The event is free and open to the public, but donations toward the cause are greatly appreciated.
Donations: Please make check payable to "HR 121" and bring it to the event or mail it to:
H.Res. 121 Coalition in CA
3580 Wilshire Blvd. #1050
L.A., CA 90012
For more info go to: support121.org
Support the cause, spread the word.
