On the 75th anniversary of the issuance of Executive Order 9066, which led to the internment of over 120,000 Japanese Americans during World War II, Hawaiian Senator Mazie Hirono has led a Senate resolution condemning policies based on racial, ethnic or religious discrimination.
The resolution states that “policies that discriminate against any individual based on the actual or perceived race, ethnicity, national origin, or religion of that individual would be a repetition of the mistakes of Executive Order 9066 and contrary to the values of the United States.”
The resolution is co-sponsored by 27 Democratic senators and Sen. Bernie Sanders. It is also supported by over 30 organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union. Many backers find the anti-discrimination resolution particularly important following the election of President Donald Trump, who has been accused of spouting hateful rhetoric and supporting discriminatory policies, most recently his executive order banning the issuance of visas to travelers from six Muslim-majority countries.
“The President can continue to live in a world of alternative facts, but it’s clear that his administration’s policies harken back to the hateful rhetoric that led to the internment of Japanese Americans,” Sen. Hirono said in a press release. “This internment of Japanese Americans was deeply wrong, and it set a precedent – that it should never happen again. We will resist any and all attempts that take us back to this dark era.”
