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1 | SENATE RESOLUTION
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2 | WHEREAS, During the Japanese colonial and wartime | ||||||
3 | expansion of Asia and the Pacific Islands from 1932 through the | ||||||
4 | duration of World War II, approximately 200,000 women and girls | ||||||
5 | were coerced into a system of forced military prostitution; and
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6 | WHEREAS, The term "comfort women" was a euphemism used by | ||||||
7 | the Japanese government to describe women and girls forced into | ||||||
8 | sexual slavery by the Imperial Japanese military at camps, | ||||||
9 | known as "comfort stations"; and
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10 | WHEREAS, The majority of "comfort women" were of Korean or | ||||||
11 | Chinese descent, but women from Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, | ||||||
12 | Malaysia, the Philippines, Australia, and the Netherlands were | ||||||
13 | also interned in military camps run directly by the Imperial | ||||||
14 | Japanese military or private agents working for the military; | ||||||
15 | and | ||||||
16 | WHEREAS, Some of the women were sold to these military | ||||||
17 | camps as minors, others were deceptively recruited by middlemen | ||||||
18 | with the promise of employment and financial security, and | ||||||
19 | still others were forcibly kidnapped and forced to become | ||||||
20 | "sexual slaves" for soldiers stationed throughout the Japanese | ||||||
21 | occupied territories; and |
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1 | WHEREAS, Approximately three-quarters of the "comfort | ||||||
2 | women" died as a direct result of the brutality inflicted on | ||||||
3 | them during their internment; some of those who survived were | ||||||
4 | left infertile due to sexual violence or sexually transmitted | ||||||
5 | diseases; and | ||||||
6 | WHEREAS, The stories of the "comfort women" are an | ||||||
7 | essential part of the history of human trafficking; and | ||||||
8 | WHEREAS, The United Nations reports that 2.4 million people | ||||||
9 | across the globe are victims of human trafficking at any one | ||||||
10 | time, and 80% of them are being exploited as sexual slaves; and | ||||||
11 | WHEREAS, At least 16,000 women and girls are involved in | ||||||
12 | the sex trade every year in Chicago, many of whom are victims | ||||||
13 | of human trafficking; and | ||||||
14 | WHEREAS, The State of Illinois stands against human | ||||||
15 | trafficking in all its forms, as evidenced by the 2005 | ||||||
16 | formation of the Illinois Rescue and Restore Coalition, a | ||||||
17 | partnership between the Illinois Department of Human Services | ||||||
18 | and the federal government to combat labor and sex trafficking | ||||||
19 | in Illinois; and | ||||||
20 | WHEREAS, The State of Illinois further showed its | ||||||
21 | commitment to fighting human trafficking through Public Act |
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1 | 98-0435, which became law last August and allows trafficking | ||||||
2 | victims to receive financial assistance to remove "trafficking | ||||||
3 | tattoos" that traffickers often use to brand their victims as | ||||||
4 | their property; and | ||||||
5 | WHEREAS, It is fitting for the Senate to support H.R. 121, | ||||||
6 | adopted by the United States House of Representatives in 2007, | ||||||
7 | which called upon the Japanese government to stand by its | ||||||
8 | statement of remorse for the sexual enslavement of "comfort | ||||||
9 | women" by the Imperial Japanese Army and its apology to | ||||||
10 | survivors and to educate future generations about these crimes; | ||||||
11 | therefore, be it
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12 | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL | ||||||
13 | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we recognize and | ||||||
14 | support "comfort women" by acknowledging as historical fact the | ||||||
15 | suffering they endured during their forced internment in | ||||||
16 | Japanese military comfort stations; and be it further
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17 | RESOLVED, That we urge all Illinois educators to share with | ||||||
18 | students of an appropriate age the story of "comfort women" | ||||||
19 | when discussing the history of Asia or World War II, or the | ||||||
20 | issue of human trafficking; and be it further
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21 | RESOLVED, That we commit to working toward the inclusion of | ||||||
22 | Asian and Asian American experiences, such as the story of |
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1 | "comfort women" and the forced incarceration of Japanese | ||||||
2 | Americans during World War II, in history and social science | ||||||
3 | curricula used in Illinois public schools; and be it further
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4 | RESOLVED, That we reaffirm our commitment to ending all | ||||||
5 | forms of violence and trafficking of women in the State of | ||||||
6 | Illinois; and be it further
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7 | RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be | ||||||
8 | presented to the executive directors of the Korean American | ||||||
9 | Resource & Cultural Center, Korean American Voter Organizing | ||||||
10 | Initiative & Community Empowerment, Korean American Women in | ||||||
11 | Need, the Japanese American Service Committee, the Cambodian | ||||||
12 | Association of Illinois, and Asian Americans Advancing | ||||||
13 | Justice-Chicago.
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