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11 <br /> on Aging never stopped working during the pandemic, and meals were provided, programming <br /> continued, Tax preparation was offered, etc. She said she is thrilled to publically praise Janice <br /> Tyler, and express her heartfelt gratitude. She said she took her mother to the Seymour Center <br /> in March 2020 for exercise class and lunch, and they sat next to Reverend Seymour. She said <br /> her mother died a few months ago, and her last social activity was at the Seymour Center. She <br /> said it is important to take time to recognize the contributions of the community towards the well <br /> being of older adults. She thanked the BOCC for its support, on behalf of the board and her <br /> mother. <br /> Commissioner Bedford said Janice Tyler's department exemplifies how County <br /> departments did not miss a beat in providing services during the pandemic. <br /> Commissioner Greene thanked Janice Tyler and her department. She said10,000 baby <br /> boomers turn 65 every day. <br /> Commissioner Hamilton thanked Janice Tyler. She said it is important to support <br /> institutions you will need in the future. <br /> Chair Price said she misses going to the Department of Aging and seeing people. <br /> d. Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month Proclamation <br /> The Board considered voting to approve a proclamation recognizing May 2021 as Asian <br /> American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in Orange County, North Carolina. <br /> BACKGROUND: <br /> May 2021 will mark the 291h anniversary of the enactment of Public Law 102-450 by Congress <br /> in 1992 proclaiming the month of May as Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. <br /> The month of May was chosen to commemorate Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in part <br /> because the first immigration of Japanese to the United States. was in May of 1843. It also <br /> marks the completion of the Trans-Continental Railroad in May 1869 where most of the workers <br /> were of Asian descent. <br /> The importance of this month is unfortunately highlighted by the many attacks on people of <br /> Asian descent, including elders. According to a report from the organization Stop Asian <br /> American Pacific Islander Hate, there were nearly 3,000 reported incidents of racism and <br /> discrimination targeting Asian Americans nationwide. Between March and December of 2020, <br /> twenty four (24) of those accounts occurred in North Carolina. <br /> There is a long history of discrimination that people of Asian and Pacific Islander heritage have <br /> faced even at the hands of the U.S. Federal Government. In 1882 Congress passed the <br /> Chinese Exclusion Act, which was the first and only law that specifically prohibited the <br /> immigration of a group of people based on race and geographical origin. It also prevented the <br /> Chinese from becoming U.S. Citizens. Later the United States would carry out the forced <br /> internment of 120,000 Japanese under Executive Order 9066 issued on February 19, 1942. <br /> However, the story of Asian American Pacific Islanders in the United States is not just one of <br /> discrimination but also one of contributions to American History and Culture. We find this in the <br /> brave acts of the 110th/442 Infantry Regiment, composed mostly of second generation <br /> Japanese Americans (Nesei) who fought in the European Theater during World War II while <br /> their families were held in internment camps. The 110th/442 would go on to become the most <br /> decorated military unit in U.S. History. There are numerous contributions to the arts such as <br /> Charles Yu who won the most recent 2020 National Book Award for Interior Chinatown, cellist <br />