Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of my bill, the Japanese American Confinement Education Act. This bill builds upon one of my earliest achievements, reauthorizing the Japanese American Confinement Sites program established in 2006. The Japanese American story is an important one. It needs to be told and retold. It is a story that cannot afford to be lost in time. This year marks the 80th anniversary of the authorization of Executive Order 9066. Yet, too many Americans do not know the history of the Japanese American community. These Americans were stripped from their homes and sent to remote camps. Families were put behind barbed wire and guarded by armed soldiers. Today, I speak to you on the floor of the people's House as a Member of this esteemed Chamber. Yet, my first 3 months of life were part of that pained experience. My parents were among those who lived in these appalling conditions, incarcerated solely because of their ancestry. This also included many people from the Sacramento region, including my late husband, Congressman Bob Matsui, who was only 6 months old when he was sent to one of these camps. Those of us in the Japanese American community know all too well if we do not learn from history, we risk the chance of it repeating. That is why we must continue to lift up these stories. That is why we must continue to listen to those who came before us and teach this history to our future generations. These are the voices that my bill seeks to preserve.…”