Jackie Speier: “Our Nation is great because in times of trial when we do the wrong thing, we will come back and do the right thing. What…”

“Our Nation is great because in times of trial when we do the wrong thing, we will come back and do the right thing. What this amendment does is attempt to address a wrong that we did many years ago, and right that wrong by restoring a promise that we made to Filipinos that fought side-by-side with us in World War II. We promised them in no uncertain terms that they would enjoy the same veterans benefits that others received for putting their lives at risk. More than 200,000 Filipinos fought in defense of the United States in the Pacific theater against the Japanese in World War II, and more than half of them were killed. As citizens of a commonwealth of the United States before and during the war, Filipinos were legally American nationals, and they were promised the same benefits afforded to those serving in the United States Armed Forces. {time} 1910 But in 1946, Congress passed the Rescission Act, a law that stripped Filipinos of the benefits that had been promised them by Franklin Delano Roosevelt. The Rescission Act created a wrong that will not be righted unless our Nation restores the veteran status it promised to Filipino soldiers more than 65 years ago. Now the irony here, Mr. Chairman, is that there were other countries that provided us with men and women who served during World War II, and they were also promised veterans benefits. In fact, there are 65 countries that provided servicemembers to fight alongside us.…”