Washington, D.C. (April 14, 2016) — U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (HI-02) spoke on the House floor today to call for quick passage of H.R. 2737 to award Filipino Veterans of WWII the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian honor bestowed by the U.S. Congress. The legislation, introduced by Rep. Tulsi Gabbard in June 2015, has 76 cosponsors in the U.S. House, and is partnered with S.1555 in the U.S. Senate.

Video of Rep. Tulsi Gabbard’s full speech on the House floor is available here

“There are more than 200,000 Filipino and Filipino-American soldiers who responded to President Roosevelt’s call-to-duty. They fought under our American flag during World War II.

These loyal and courageous soldiers suffered, fought, and gave up their lives alongside their American counterparts throughout the war. Yet decades have gone by, and they are still waiting for their service to be recognized.

I’ve introduced H.R. 2737, legislation that is strongly supported by members of both parties, and in both chambers, to award these deserving veterans the Congressional Gold Medal so that our country can show our appreciation and recognize them for their dedicated service and sacrifice in defeating the Imperial Japanese Army.

Today there are just 18,000 of these Filipino World War II veterans who are still alive today. Time is of the essence. We cannot afford to wait. I urge my colleagues to quickly pass this legislation so that these courageous men may be honored while they are still among us.”