Thursday, July 23, 2009

California Apologizes to Chinese Americans


Time.com: California Apologizes to Chinese Americans

On July 17, the California legislature approved a bill to apologize to the Californian Chinese-American community for racist laws made between the 1850-1950.

These laws limited the number of Chinese immigrants and made it very difficult for the Chinese to petition for their families to join them in America. The laws also prohibited Chinese-Americans marrying, traveling, and working freely. The new bill recognizes the contributions Chinese immigrants have made to the state, particularly their work on the Transcontinental Railroad.

I am particularly grateful to CA Assembly Member, Paul Fong of Cupertino, for sponsoring this bill. I have worked in his district for many years at Shareworld Learning Center 新學友教育學習中心 as an SAT instructor. I behalf of my students in Cupertino and Milpitas, and the citizens and residents of California, thanks Paul Fong!

--Jennifer Gagliardi

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