Well, that only took 130 years. On Monday, the House of Representatives unanimously passed a resolution officially expressing regret for the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, which barred Chinese people from immigrating to the United States: US House 'regrets' Chinese Exclusion.
The legislation (H. Res 683), proposed by Rep. Judy Chu, officially and formally expresses the regret of the House of Representatives for the Chinese Exclusion Act and other legislation that discriminated against people of Chinese origin in the United States.
Here's the official statement from Rep. Chu:
"Today the House made history when both chambers of Congress officially and formally acknowledged the ugly and un-American nature of laws that targeted Chinese immigrants. The Chinese Exclusion Act enshrined injustice into our legal code - it stopped the Chinese, and the Chinese alone, from immigrating, from ever becoming naturalized citizens and ever having the right to vote. The last generation of people personally affected by these laws is leaving us, and finally Congress has expressed the sincere regret that Chinese Americans deserve and reaffirmed our commitment to the civil rights of all people. This is only the fourth time that Congress has passed such a resolution of regret in the last 25 years. This makes today a rare moment in history for the Chinese American Community."This is pretty historic, marking the first time that the U.S. House of Representatives has acknowledged how friggin' racist and destructive the Chinese Exclusion Act was to the Chinese American community. The Senate passed similar legislation last October. More here: In rare apology, House regrets exclusionary laws targeting Chinese.
