P1 1WHEREAS, April 30, 2015, marks the 40th anniversary of the
2fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975, to communism; and
3WHEREAS, For many Vietnam and Vietnam-era veterans who
4were directly involved in the war and Vietnamese Americans who
5have settled in the United States, the Vietnam War was a tragedy
6full of great suffering and the loss of American, Vietnamese, and
7Southeast Asian lives; and
P2 1WHEREAS, Fifty-eight thousand one hundred sixty-nine people
2were killed and 304,000 were wounded out of the 2.59 million
3people who served in the Vietnam War. One out of every 10
4Americans who served in Vietnam became a casualty of war; and
5WHEREAS, After the fall of Saigon, over 135,000 Vietnamese
6people and their families fled to the United States, including former
7military personnel, government officials, and those who had
8worked for the United States during the war; and
9WHEREAS, Thousands of people took boats in order to leave
10Vietnam in the late 1970s to mid-1980s. The successful emigrants
11reached refugee camps in Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, the
12Philippines, and Hong Kong; while approximately one-half of the
13people fleeing Vietnam perished at sea; and
14WHEREAS, According to the United States Census for 2010,
15more than 465,000 Vietnamese live in California, with the largest
16concentration of Vietnamese found outside of Vietnam residing
17in Orange County and Santa Clara County; and
18WHEREAS, Human rights, religious freedom, democracy, and
19protection against threats of aggression are important concerns of
20Vietnamese Americans; and
21WHEREAS, We must teach our children and future generations
22important lessons from the Vietnam War, including how the plight
23of the Vietnamese refugees following the end of war serves as a
24powerful example of the values of freedom and democracy; and
25WHEREAS, We, the people of California, should actively
26rededicate ourselves to the principles of human rights, individual
27freedom, sovereignty, and equal protection under the laws of a just
28and democratic world. Californians should set aside moments of
29time every year on April 30 to give remembrance to the soldiers,
30medical personnel, and civilians who died during the Vietnam War
31in pursuit of freedom; and
32WHEREAS, Vietnamese American communities throughout
33California will commemorate April 30, 2015, as Black April, a
34day of remembrance and rededication to the principles of freedom,
35including freedom of expression, freedom of press, and Internet
36freedom; now, therefore, be it
37Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, That in
38recognition of the great tragedy and suffering and lives lost during
39the Vietnam War, the week of April 23, 2015, to April 30, 2015,
40inclusive, shall be proclaimed Black April Memorial Week, a
P3 1special time for Californians to remember the countless lives lost
2during the Vietnam War era, and to hope for more justice and
3liberty for the people of Vietnam; and be it further
4Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies
5of this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.
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