Rep. Chu Welcomes Racial Profiling Investigation Included in Appropriations Bill

Washington, D.C. – On Tuesday, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, and Science (CJS) adopted language requesting the Department of Justice Office of Inspector General to investigate whether there exists a pattern or practice of using race, national origin, and other civil rights classifications to target Federal employees and other Americans. The Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) pushed for the language following recent high-profile arrests of Chinese-American scientists wrongfully accused of espionage only to have those charges later dropped. The amendment, offered by Rep. Mike Honda, the Ranking Member of the CJS Appropriations Subcommittee, was adopted by voice vote and included into the CJS Appropriations Bill for Fiscal Year 2017. Rep. Judy Chu (CA-27), Chair of CAPAC, released the following statement:

“I am so pleased that the Appropriations Committee heard and responded to our serious concerns about racial profiling by federal investigators and prosecutors. When I first heard the stories of Guoqing Cao, Shuyu Li, Sherry Chen, and Xiaoxing Xi - each of whom was accused of espionage-related crimes only to have all charges against them later dropped with no explanation – I was chilled, as were many other Chinese-Americans who worry their race alone may make them suspect next. This is why as Chair of CAPAC, I made securing an independent investigation of recent espionage cases a priority. And along with my fellow CAPAC members, I urged the Appropriations Committee to include report language that requests this of the DOJ's Office of Inspector General. We thank Rep. Mike Honda, the top Democrat on the CJS Appropriations Subcommittee and Chair Emeritus of CAPAC, for working to include our ask to assess whether patterns or practices of racial profiling exist within the Department of Justice. This clarity is needed to assure our communities that profiling is not acceptable and that e-mailing while Chinese is not a crime.”

On May 13, CAPAC sent a letter to the DOJ Office of Inspector General demanding an independent investigation into whether race, ethnicity, or national origin played a part in recent cases in which Chinese Americans were suspected of espionage. The letter comes after similar requests were made in a previous letter and during a CAPAC meeting with Attorney General Loretta Lynch in November 2015.

The language included in the FY’17 Commerce, Justice, and Science Appropriations Bill is as follows:

The Committee has heard concerns that Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders have been profiled by Department of Justice investigators and prosecutors on the basis of race and national origin, including in espionage and trade secret cases. The Committee expects the Department of Justice Office of Inspector General to assess whether there exists a pattern or practice of using race, national origin, and other civil rights classifications to target Federal employees and other Americans; report on any allegations of civil rights or civil liberties violations committed by DOJ employees in its semiannual reports to Congress as required by Section 1001 of the USA PATRIOT Act (Public Law 107–56); and if such patterns or practices are found to exist, to describe steps the Department has taken to address them.