Political Quotes

“I rise today to urge my colleagues to support the Hirono-Heller amendment No. 2109, which deals with Asian American and Pacific Islander, or AAPI, student data. AAPIs are the fastest growing population in the United States, but it is important to highlight that we are not all the same. I know this from my personal experience. Just a few months ago, I attended the White House state dinner for Japanese Prime Minister Abe. The next day, there was a nice photo in the Washington Post with a caption that said, ``Senator Mazie Hirono and her guest''--except it wasn't me. It was actually my good friend Congresswoman Doris Matsui of California. In my time in Congress, I have often been mistaken for other AAPI members. Just a few months ago, during the budget debate, when I was on the floor of the Senate, C-SPAN identified me as Senator Daniel K. Inouye. I have been mistaken for Judy Chu, who is Chinese, and others. I may be the only AAPI in the Senate right now, but we are not all the same. We come from different places and have vastly different backgrounds that make us who we are today. The same is true in education. Our current law and the Every Child Achieves Act use the broad ``Asian Americans/Pacific Islander'' category to cover all AAPIs. This AAPI group includes Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Asian Indian, Filipino, Korean, Native Hawaiian, Samoan, and others.…”