Bill Text: MN HR1 | 2020 | 91st Legislature 5th Special Session | Draft
Bill Title: COVID-19; a House resolution condemning all forms of anti-Asian sentiment.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-10-14 - Resolution introduced, referred to Rules and Legislative Administration [HR1 Detail]
Download: Minnesota-2020-HR1-Draft.html
Minnesota Legislature
HR 1
as introduced - 91st Legislature, 2020 5th Special Session (2020 - 2020) Posted on 10/14/2020 10:36am
Current Version - as introduced
A House resolution
expressing the sense of the Minnesota House condemning all forms of anti-Asian
sentiment related to COVID-19.
WHEREAS, 23 million Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders account for seven percent of
the Nation's population in the United States; and
WHEREAS, over two million Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders are working on the
frontline of the COVID-19 pandemic response in health care, law enforcement, first responders,
transportation, supermarkets, and other service industries; and
WHEREAS, the use of anti-Asian terminology and rhetoric related to COVID-19, such as
the "Chinese Virus," "Wuhan Virus," and "Kung-flu," have perpetuated anti-Asian stigma and since
January 2020, there has been a dramatic increase in reports of hate crimes and incidents against
people of Asian descent; and
WHEREAS, the increased use of anti-Asian rhetoric has resulted in Asian Americans being
harassed, assaulted, and scapegoated for the COVID-19 pandemic and Asian-American businesses
being targeted for vandalism; and
WHEREAS, the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention recognize that naming COVID-19 by its geographic location or linking it to a specific
ethnicity perpetuates stigma; and
WHEREAS, the Secretary General of the United Nations called for international solidarity
and an end to any ill-founded discrimination of the pandemic's victims; NOW, THEREFORE,
BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the State of Minnesota that it calls
on all public officials to condemn and denounce any and all anti-Asian sentiment in any form;
recognizes that the health and safety of all Americans, no matter their background, must be of
utmost priority; condemns all manifestations of expressions of racism, xenophobia, discrimination,
anti-Asian sentiment, and ethnic or religious intolerance; calls on State and local law enforcement
officials to investigate and document all credible reports of hate crimes and incidents and threats
against the Asian-American community in Minnesota; and encourages the leadership of Minnesota
to build more inclusive, diverse, and tolerant societies and to combat misinformation and
discrimination that puts Asian Americans at risk.
