Bill Text: CA AJR1 | 2019-2020 | Regular Session | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Vietnamese refugees.

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 56-12-1)

Status: (Passed) 2019-02-22 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Res. Chapter 8, Statutes of 2019. [AJR1 Detail]

Download: California-2019-AJR1-Amended.html

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Amended  IN  Assembly  January 15, 2019

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2019–2020 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Joint Resolution

No. 1

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Introduced by Assembly Member Members Daly and Kalra
(Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Diep)
(Principal coauthor: Senator Umberg)
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Chiu, Gloria, Muratsuchi, O’Donnell, Petrie-Norris, and Ting)
(Coauthor: Senator Pan)

December 14, 2018

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Relative to Vietnamese refugees.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AJR 1, as amended, Daly. Vietnamese refugees.

This measure would respectfully urge the President of the United States to stop any efforts to reinterpret or renegotiate reinterpret, disregard, or in any way prohibit the extension of the 2008 United States-Vietnam repatriation agreement, agreement and urges that any renegotiation of the agreement include historically accepted deportation protections for Vietnamese refugees and would state that the Legislature stands in solidarity with the Vietnamese refugees who came to the United States before 1995. refugees.

Digest Key

Fiscal Committee: NO  

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Bill Text

WHEREAS, Many Vietnamese Americans living in the State of California today came to the United States after the fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975, which marked the beginning of an exodus of over one million Vietnamese who left their homeland fleeing communism in search of freedom and democracy; and

WHEREAS, Over the past four decades, Vietnamese immigrants have enriched the social, cultural, and economic landscape of the United States and the great State of California; and

WHEREAS, As new immigrants, Vietnamese Americans overcame social, linguistic, and economic challenges through hard work, achieving success in a plethora of professional fields, including business, military service, politics and law, science and education, literature and journalism, and sports and entertainment; and

WHEREAS, The State of California is home to more than 500,000 Vietnamese Americans that enrich the social, cultural, and economic fabric of our state; and

WHEREAS, Vietnamese Americans have enhanced California’s culture through the establishment of vibrant Little Saigon communities throughout the state that preserve Vietnamese heritage, food, language, and customs for younger generations and allow all Californians to be immersed in the richness of Vietnamese culture; and

WHEREAS, Refusing to forget their historical struggle for freedom and democracy, Vietnamese Americans throughout the United States and the State of California continue to speak out against the systematic assaults on the freedoms of expression and religion perpetrated today by the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and advocate in favor of human rights and democracy in Vietnam and worldwide; and

WHEREAS, An agreement made in 2008 between the United States government and Vietnamese government specifically bars the deportation of Vietnamese people who arrived in the United States before July 12, 1995; and

WHEREAS, The 2008 agreement specifically states that Vietnamese citizens are “not subject to return to Vietnam” if they “arrived in the United States before July 12, 1995; now 1995”; now, therefore, be it” it

Resolved by the Assembly and the Senate of the State of California, jointly, That the Legislature respectfully urges the President of the United States to stop any efforts to reinterpret or renegotiate reinterpret, disregard, or in any way prohibit the extension of the 2008 United States-Vietnam repatriation agreement; agreement as it is currently written and urges that any renegotiation of the agreement include historically accepted deportation protections for Vietnamese refugees; and it be further

Resolved, That the Legislature stands in solidarity with the Vietnamese refugees who came to our country before 1995. refugees; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of this resolution to the President and the Vice President of the United States, to the Majority Leader of the Senate, to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, to each Senator and Representative from California in the Congress of the United States, and to the author for appropriate distribution.