Historic sit-in ends in House of Representatives

UPDATED: 1 p.m., June 23

THE HISTORIC SIT-IN in the chambers of the House of Representatives ended a few minutes ago (June 23).

Hundreds of supporters outside the Capitol cheered the Democratic House members as they walked down the steps. The Congress members' hair was a little unkempt and their suits a bit rumpled, they smile and waved. The demonstration ended the way it began, with the words of civil rights icon, Rep. John Lewis.

"We are going to win. We are going to win. The fight, the fight is not over. This is just one step. When we come back here on July the 5th, we are going to continue to push, to pull, to stand up and if necessary, to sit down or sit in," he said.

He then strongly urged people to vote in the November election.

"The vote is precious. It's almost sacred," he said. "No one but no one can afford to stay home on election day. We got to get out there and do it and turn our country around and build a community of love and hope."

Dozens of the legislators spent the night in the chamber finding space on the floor or in the seats. They awoke to see the hundreds of supporters who spent the night outside on the steps of the Capitol.

The unprecedented action which drew the support of AAPI members of the House and Senate began yesterday morning at the urging of Rep. John Lewis, the civil rights icon in order to get the GOP-controlled chamber to vote on two gun control billls in the wake of the mass shooting in Orlando, Florida two weeks ago which killed 50 people.

RELATED: AAPI lawmakers join sit-in in the House for gun-control legislation

Many of the Democratic lawmakers spent the night in the chamber with aides bringing in pillows, blankets and food. Someone in California bought a dozen pizzas and had them delivered to the House members.

To hear what Rep. Mike Honda (D-Silicon Valley) has to say about this historic action, click here.

Ultimately, the Democrats didn’t get a vote. And even if they had, it wasn’t likely that the bill would have passed. But the sit-in galvanized the party and showed the public where the Democratic Party stood on the gun issue, with millions watching the protest on their computers, tablets and smart phones.

Our thanks go the Asian/American lawmakers who joined the sit-in and spent the night using social media to let the world know what was going on in our nation's Capitol.

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AAPI lawmakers join Democratic House members in sit-in for gun control action

FINAL UPDATE: 11 p.m. EST, June 22, 2016

Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) called on his fellow Democrats to stage a sit-in in the House chambers this morning
(June 22) for a vote on gun control measures. 

WHOA! We have a Capra-esque moment developing this morning.

Georgia Rep. Rep. John Lewis, the heart, the soul of congressional Democrats, is leading his colleagues in a sit-in for a vote on gun safety legislation. You won't see it televised, because the Republicans controlling the House also control the cameras. C-SPAN, however, began broadcasting live feeds from House members using Facebook and Periscope to capture the speeches by the protestors. To watch the sit-in live, click here.

The lawmakers were acting in response to the June 12 mass shooting at a Florida nightclub that killed 49 people, and to votes on Monday that failed to advance four gun control amendments.

In the speech, Lewis said, "Sometimes you have to do something out of the ordinary. Sometimes you have to make a way out of no way. We have been too quiet for too long. There comes a time when you have to say something, when you have to make a little noise.  When you have to move your feet. And this is the time. Now is the time to get in the way. The time to act is now. We will be silent no more. The time for silence is over."

Asian/American representatives were quick to use social media to let the world know what was happening. Rep. Judy Chu, (D-Ca), who joined the sit-in in its early hours, tweeted this out:

Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), who led the talking filibuster to force the votes in the Senate earlier this week is on the House floor in solidarity.

Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) held a press conference essentially saying that the Party leadership supports this action. She tells Democrats that the public is not being allowed into the galleries to see their protest. Democrats chant "SHAME!" "It's the People's House!" Also, the Sergeant at Arms has told members to stop sharing photos and video from the floor.

If you have a Democratic senator, call his or her office and urge them to join Rep. Lewis and Chu and Sen. Murphy. Also call your Democratic House representative and urge them to join. The Capitol switchboard number is (202) 224-3121, and they will connect you.

It looks and feels like an inspirational scene from motion picture director Frank Capra's classic Mr. Smith Goes To Washington, when Lewis got up to the podium and launched his passionate appeal:

Mr. Lewis: Mr. Speaker, I will ask that all of my colleagues join me on the floor. On occasion, Mr. Speaker, I have had what I call an executive session with myself. For months, even for years, I wondered what would bring this body to take action? What will finally make congress do what is right? What is just what the people of this country have been demanding, and what is long overdue? We have lost hundreds and thousands of innocent people to gun violence, to tiny little children, babies, students and teachers, mothers and fathers, sisters and brothers, daughters and sons, friends and neighbors . And what has this body done? 

Mr. Speaker, nothing. Not one thing. We have turned deaf ears. We have turned deaf ears to the blood of the innocent and the concern of our nation. We are blind to a crisis. Mr. Speaker, where is the heart of this body? Where is our soul? Where is our moral leadership? Where is our courage? Those who work on bipartisan solutions are pushed aside. Those who pursue commonsense improvement are beaten down. Reason is criticized. Obstruction is praised. Newtown, Aurora, Charleston, Orlando. What is the tipping point? Are we blind? Can we see? How many more mothers, how many more fathers need to shed tears of grief before we do something ? We were elected to lead, Mr. Speaker. We must be headlights and not taillights. We cannot continue to stick our heads in the sand. Deadly mass shootings are becoming more and more frequent . Mr. Speaker, this is the fight. It is not an opinion. We must remove the blinders. The time for silence and patience is long gone. We're calling on the leadership of the house to bring commonsense gun control legislation to the house floor.

Give us a vote. Let us vote. We came here to do our job. We came here to work. The American people are demanding action. Do we have the courage? Do we have raw courage to make at least a down payment on ending gun violence in America? We can no longer wait. We can no longer be patient, so today we come to the well of the house to drum the need for action. Not next month. Not next year. But now. Today. Sometimes you have to do something out of the ordinary. Sometimes you have to make a way out of no way. We have been too quiet for too long. There comes a time when you have to say something, when you have to make a little noise. When you have to move your feet . This is the time. Now is the time to get in the way. The time to act is now. We will be silent no more. The time for silence is over. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It looks like the House members are in for the long haul. Sen. Mazie Hirono and her staff came by with much needed sustenance.

While waiting for the Republicans to return, in the late afternoon and early evening, several Democratic senators joined the sit-in support. Among them were: Sens. Elizabeth Warren (Mass.), Chris Coons (Del.), Chuck Schumer (N.Y.), Amy Klobuchar (Minn.), Al Franken (Minn.), Tim Kaine (Va.), Bill Nelson (Fla.), Cory Booker (N.J.), Claire McCaskill (Mo.), Debbie Stabenow (Mich.), Dick Durbin (Ill.), Chris Murphy (Conn.), Richard Blumenthal (Conn.), Jeff Merkley (Ore.) and Mazie Hirono (Hawaii). Presidential candidate and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) joined late in the afternoon.


The Republicans gaveled the meeting to order at 10:05 p.m. to vote on unrelated matters. C-SPAN began broadcasting again showing the Democrats still sitting in front of the podium. During the voting, the Democrats chanted, "No Bill, No Break," and "No Fly, No Buy." 

Around 10:30 p.m. EST, the Democrats began singing "We Shall Overcome."

As of this Final Update today, the drama in the House chambers continues into the night. 

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For more news about Asian/Americans & Pacific Islanders, read AsAm News.

Still shocked and recovering from Orlando

EXCUSE me for being so incoherent on this subject but it's hard to make sense of such a senseless act -- the mass shooting in Orlando in the early morning of June 12. I just have to get this out, as if writing will cleanse my mind of this horror.

America is No. 1. Are we on the way to being "Great Again?" No! The No. 1 I'm referring to is the number of mass shootings we have. Depending on how you loosely you define "mass shooting," we suffer almost one mass shooting a day this year or six to date in 2016. One per day or six in six months, both numbers are way too many. 

I thought when Sandy Hook happened and pictures of all those dead children were on the front pages of the world's newspapers, America would come up with some sensible gun laws.

That was four years ago. Nothing has been done. NOTHING!

When I was in the Army, the weapon the infantry used was the M16. That was during the Vietnam era. The M16 and the assault-style rifle Sig Sauer MCX used by the killer was designed for one thing and one thing only - to kill people. They are called assault weapons for a reason. 

You can get better rifles for target shooting and more appropriate weapons for hunting. There are better designed guns and rarer weapons, rifles that have a significant symbolism.  Owning an assault weapon is a macho thing, an extension of a guy's penis. Unless you really believe that there will be a zombie apocalypse, there is no reason to buy an assault gun except ... I repeat ... to kill other people, a lot of people.

The reason mass shooters prefer assault weapons is because you don't have to be an expert marksman to shoot someone. At full-automatic, you're bound to hit something ... I mean, someone - another human being.

Now we have Orlando. I don't care what religion or ethnicity the gunman was. Anybody who would do what he did had to be mentally ill and yet, he was able to buy his deadly weapon legally. No questions asked.

Forty-nine victims were killed (so far), 53 wounded, one dead shooter. That a record, of sorts: the most killed in a mass shooting in America's history. Ugly numbers. Nothing to be proud of. I fear the numbers may inspire others to try and break that record.

Asian/Americans have responded to the tragedy that occurred in Orlando earlier this week.

When she was chosen to become Miss Universe, Pia Wurtzbach said during her reign, she'd like to be an advocate for the LGBT community.

When the deadly shootings occurred in Orlando, Florida that claimed she used the Miss Universe Instagram account to send out this message. 

“And if you’re wondering why I chose this photo? Because I am Miss Universe Pia Wurtzbach from a highly conservative Catholic country but I am not afraid. Celebrated but also sometimes criticized. And staying true to my word, the LGBT community is close to my heart,” said the 26-year-old beauty queen from the Philippine.

Other Asian/Americans were quick to respond to the horrible events in Pulse, an Orlando nightclub catering to the LGBTQ community. Here are some of the responses derived from numerous news sources.

Broadway star Lea Salonga tweeted out the following:

Actor George Takei sent out this message:

"We take this time to honor our partnership with LGBTQIA communities to take on hate violence and domestic terrorism directed at our communities," said the South Asian Americans Leading Together (SAALT) in a statement. "We will continue to stand shoulder to shoulder to speak out, demand policy change, expect law enforcement to protect our communities, and lift up each other's humanity. We cannot allow tragedy to divide our communities when solidarity is more important than ever. And, for everyone who stands at the intersection of Muslim and LGBTQIA identities, we offer you extra love and support. We see you and we stand with you."

South Asian Americans Leading Together joined with the Muslim Alliance for Sexual and Gender Diversity, the National Queer Asian Pacific Islander Alliance and South Asian Lesbian Gay Alliance-New York in issuing the following statement:

"We take this time to honor our partnership with LGBTQIA communities to take on hate violence and domestic terrorism directed at our communities. We will continue to stand shoulder to shoulder to speak out, demand policy change, expect law enforcement to protect our communities, and lift up each other’s humanity. We cannot allow tragedy to divide our communities when solidarity is more important than ever. And, for everyone who stands at the intersection of Muslim and LGBTQIA identities, we offer you extra love and support. We see you and we stand with you."