BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SCR 29|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SCR 29
Author: Correa (D), et al
Amended: As introduced
Vote: 21
WITHOUT REFERENCE TO COMMITTEE OR FILE
SUBJECT : Black April Memorial Week
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This resolution proclaims the week of April 23
to April 30, 2009, inclusive, as Black April Memorial Week,
a special time for Californians to remember the countless
lives lost during the Vietnam War era, and to hope for a
more humane and just life for the people of Vietnam.
ANALYSIS :
This resolution makes the following legislative findings:
1.April 30, 2009, marks the 34th anniversary of the fall of
Saigon on April 30, 1975, to communism.
2.For many Vietnam and Vietnam-era veterans who were
directly involved in the war and Vietnamese Americans who
have settled in the United States, the Vietnam War was a
tragedy full of great suffering and the loss of American,
Vietnamese, and Southeast Asian lives.
CONTINUED
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3.Fifty-eight thousand one hundred sixty-nine people were
killed and 304,000 were wounded out of the 2.59 million
people who served in the Vietnam War. One out of every
10 Americans who served in Vietnam became a casualty of
war.
4.After the fall of Saigon, over 135,000 Vietnamese fled to
the United States, including former military and
government officials and Vietnamese who had worked for
the Untied States during the war, and their families.
5.Thousands of people took boats in order to leave Vietnam
in the late 1970s to mid-1980s. The successful ones
reached refugee camps in Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia,
the Philippines, and Hong Kong; while approximately
one-half of the people fleeing Vietnam perished at sea.
6.According to the United States Census for 2000, 447,032
Vietnamese live in California, with the largest
concentration of Vietnamese found outside of Vietnam
living in Orange County.
7.We must teach our children and future generations
important lessons from the Vietnam War, including how the
plight of the Vietnamese refugees following the end of
the war serves as a powerful example of the values of
freedom and democracy.
8.We, the people of California, should actively rededicate
ourselves to the principles of human rights, individual
freedom, and equal protection under the laws of a just
and democratic world. Californians should set aside
moments of time ever year on April 30 to give remembrance
to the soldiers, medical personnel, and civilians who
died during the Vietnam War era in pursuit of freedom.
9.Vietnamese American communities throughout California
will commemorate April 30, 2009, as Black April, a day of
remembrance.
This resolution, in recognition of the great tragedy and
suffering and lives lost during the Vietnam War era,
recognizes and proclaims the week of April 23, 2009, to
April 30, 2009, inclusive, as Black April Memorial Week, a
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special time for Californians to remember the countless
lives lost during the Vietnam War era, and to hope for a
more humane and just life for the people of Vietnam.
FISCAL EFFECT : Fiscal Com.: No
TSM:cm 4/2/09 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: NONE RECEIVED
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