Next Step: Justice for Filipino Veterans

Join Filipinos for Affirmative Action and other groups in this effort…

On April 24, the United States Senate passed the Veterans’ Benefits Enhancement Act (S. 1315) in a bipartisan vote of 96-1. The passing of this historic bill, which was sponsored by Sen. Dan Akaka of Hawai’i, contains provisions to correct the six decades of injustice to Filipino veterans of World War II by restoring their status as U.S. veterans while maintaining and improviing benefits for other veterans.

The House of Representatives is close to bringing this legislation to the floor for a vote as early as next week, but your help is needed to make sure that when this happens. The bill needs support from both Democratic and Republican Representatives to safely pass this bill.

What YOU can do today:

Call the Capitol Hill switchboard at (202) 224-3121 to be connected to any member of Congress. You can also find information on your particular Representative by clicking here.

Tell them: “I urge Congressmember [insert name] to pass the House version of S. 1315 which includes provisions to restore US veteran status for Filipinos and provide them with the resources they need to live out the remainder of their lives with the honor and dignity they deserve.”

You can add the following talking points: (1) It’s now time for the House to act. his legislation as amended, provides a range of benefits that help ALL veterans and will NOT take a dime from any current veteran; (2) As a community, we must unite at this critical time to pass S.1315 in the House. The remaining Filipino WWII veterans cannot wait much longer.

Please call Lillian Galedo at (510) 465-9876, extension 308 with any questions about this effort.