Legal News

Our ?Sorry? Nation: California Apologizes for Treatment of Chinese

By Ashby Jones

Have anyone you need to apologize to? Now’s the moment; seems that every time we turn around, we’re reading another story about another resolution to issue a formal apology to a group wronged in the past. Congress has apologized for a land-grab in Hawaii and for the institution of slavery.

The latest comes from the Golden State, where lawmakers have issued a formal apology to thousands of Chinese immigrants who helped build the state at the turn of the last century, but were widely mistreated and persecuted. Many were denied suffrage and the rights to own property and marry freely. Click here for the story from the LA Times.

According to the story, the California assembly on Friday adopted a resolution expressing profound regret for the persecution of Chinese immigrants. The Senate has adopted the same resolution.

The bill does not seek any financial compensation for Chinese who were mistreated or denied basic civil liberties, but its authors said they intend to ask Congress to adopt the same resolution.

“Racism still reverberates today and a lot of the discrimination laws — those wounds are still open,” said assemblyman Paul Fong on Wednesday. “By apologizing, we’ll hopefully close those wounds and close a sad chapter in our history.”

“Racism still reverberates today and a lot of the discrimination laws — those wounds are still open,” Fong said Wednesday. “By apologizing, we’ll hopefully close those wounds and close a sad chapter in our history.”

Raymond Fong, a 64-year-old wine merchant in San Francisco whose father was a “paper son,” says recognizing racism in the country’s history helps people understand the roots of an ethnic community. “It’s a catalyst for getting more of the story and opens the door so people can explain,” he said.

LB Readers, we’re of several minds on the apology issue. On the one hand, we hear what assemblyman Fong says — that these apologies indeed highlight sad chapters in our national experience — and probably help highlight injustices that continue today. On the other hand, the apologies don’t confer any rights — the Supreme Court effectively said as much in the recent Hawaii case — which could cause even the least cynical among us to wonder about their value and, frankly, their sincerity (talk is cheap, after all). Any thoughts, LBers?

Photo: Chinese Historical Society of America

Full post as published by Law Blog - WSJ.com on July 23, 2009 (boomark / email).