Filipino American History Month

Floor Speech

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Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, I am proud to present H. Res. 780 for consideration. This resolution recognizes the celebration of Filipino American History Month.

House Resolution 780 was introduced on September 25, 2009, by my friend and colleague Representative Bob Filner of California. In addition, this resolution was favorably reported out of the Oversight Committee by unanimous consent on October 29, 2009, and it enjoys the support of over 50 Members of Congress. Moreover, the United States Senate passed a companion resolution to this legislation, Senate Resolution 298, by unanimous consent on October 1, 2009.

Mr. Speaker, House Resolution 780 recognizes the celebration of Filipino American History Month as a unique opportunity to reflect upon the significant advancements of Filipino Americans in our country as well as highlight the countless and diverse contributions of Filipino Americans to our national history and culture.

This monthlong celebration of Filipino American History Month was established in 1988 by the Filipino American National Historical Society to coincide with the 225th anniversary of the permanent settlement of Filipinos in the continental United States.

Notably, the Filipino American National Historical Society recognizes the year 1763 as the date of the first permanent Filipino settlement in the continental United States in the small fishing village of Saint Malo, located in what is now Saint Bernard Parish in Louisiana. These early settlers were formerly impressed sailors who escaped their oppressive conditions aboard Spanish galleons to establish a Filipino community in present-day Louisiana. The existence of this Filipino settlement was first reported in an 1883 Harper's Weekly article, which is widely believed to be the first article written about Filipino settlers in these United States.

Today, according to the most recent United States Census Bureau estimate, the Filipino American population in the United States is nearly 3.1 million, making the Filipino American community the second largest Asian American group in the United States. And while the majority of our Filipino American population is concentrated in the States of California and Hawaii, Filipino contributions in the field of public service, literature, business, science and other areas have deeply enriched the lives of all Americans across our Nation.

Whether we recall the approximately 250,000 brave Filipino Americans that served during World War II, or our Filipino Americans deployed in the support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, our brave Filipino American servicemen and -women have continually demonstrated their commitment to safeguarding our Nation at great personal sacrifice.

Accordingly, I would like to thank the sponsor of this resolution, my friend and colleague Mr. Filner of California, for his great work as chairman of our Veterans' Affairs Committee and for ensuring that the economic stimulus legislation signed by President Obama earlier this year included a provision which required that our roughly 15,000 living Filipino veterans of World War II receive their full and deserved veterans benefits.

The contributions of Filipino Americans to our national history are also evident in various other areas, including government and journalism. Notably, in 1994, Benjamin J. Cayetano became the first Filipino American elected a United States Governor. And in 1997, Filipino American journalists Byron Acohido and Alex Tizon of The Seattle Times were the recipients of Pulitzer Prizes for their outstanding contributions to American journalism.

Mr. Tizon, a native of Manila who came to the United States at the age of 4, was honored for a series of investigative articles about the widespread corruption and inequities in the Federally sponsored housing program for Native Americans. Mr. Acohido received his Pulitzer for his reporting on the conditions of the American aerospace industry.

Mr. Speaker, these are only a few of the many Filipino Americans whose achievements have greatly contributed to our national history. It is my hope that we can commemorate the contributions of all Filipino Americans through the passage of House Resolution 780 and by recognizing the significance of Filipino American History Month.

I urge my colleagues to join us in supporting H. Res. 780.

I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers. But I do want to point out that the reason we are here, dealing with noncontroversial items and commemorative items, in fact, is because the House is not scheduled to take up votes, according to the calendar, until 6:30. So we use this time to take up matters that are noncontroversial, and we postpone votes so that Members can come in during the day. They are flying in during the process.

So this is a regularly scheduled event here. This is when we take up matters that are noncontroversial, such as this one, which recognizes the importance of Filipino Americans. This is important to the Filipino American community. It is very, very important and well deserved. I think it is appropriate at a time like this to take the time to recognize their accomplishments and for being an important part of our Nation's history and our culture.

I resent the fact that the inference has been made here that somehow we are using valuable time in the House when this particular time has been segmented so as to not interrupt the important business to be taken up later in the week. We are taking this time now, while Members are flying in and we don't have a full quorum, to address these commemorative issues. We will be in for the full week, so we'll have plenty of time to take those other matters up when the House is fully assembled.

Again, I have no further speakers, but I will continue to reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, the point I was making is that this time, this time right now, has been reserved for this purpose specifically; and this is a regular occasion during the week that we do this. Again, while we have extended a courtesy to Members of the Republican side, from the minority, so that they would know when votes are expected on the floor, and we have put that to a time certain.

The reason that we are dealing with ceremonial matters, commemorative matters here, is because Members are not all in the District of Columbia right now; they're not all in Washington. They are traveling here. This is a matter of courtesy, a courtesy extended to the minority Members so that when matters of contest and of dispute might arise, they would be here in full numbers, having the full opportunity to debate those matters.

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