Monday, July 23, 2012

Apology for 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act

The U.S. recently achieved a major milestone on Congresswoman Judy Chu's resolution of regret for the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, H. Res 683. The bill passed unanimously in the House of Representatives and the Senate! To watch this historic moment, click on this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVEKx9um_jY&feature=youtu.be

To refer to some of the national press coverage, check out these clips:


L.A. Times - http://www.latimes.com/news/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-house-apology-chinese-immigrants-20120618,0,7467392.story

CNN - http://inamerica.blogs.cnn.com/2012/06/19/in-rare-apology-house-regrets-exclusionary-laws-targeting-chinese/?hpt=us_bn1
 
During the California Gold Rush, the Chinese immigrated to the U.S. to help build America.  During the economic downturn, the Chinese served as scapegoats and congress eventually created the Chinese Exclusion Act to prevent these "Mongloids" from entering the U.S.  Many thanks to Congresswoman Judy Chu for helping the U.S. to take a step towards righting this injustice. 

Friday, July 13, 2012

National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month

Did you know that July is National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month?  Why is this important?  Certain cultural groups do not discuss mental health issues due to the fear of stigma and the double minority status (for example, being an ethnic minority person with a mental illness). 

How do we combat the stigma associated with double minority status?  Speaking out through awareness campaigns would be one of the ways to fight such stereotypes.  Thus, designating July as National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month gives our communities an avenue to voice our perspectives and educate the public. 

There are excellent organizations formed with the intentions of reducing such barriers.  Check out the websites below for more information. 

http://www.nami.org/Template.cfm?Section=Multicultural_Support1&Template=/ContentManagement/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=111375

http://nned.net/index-nned.php/NNED_content/news_announcement/nmmham-webinar-II