Firing Line: Mazie Hirono

In this episode of Firing Line, Senator Mazi Hirono (D-HI) discusses bipartisan bills passed on COVID-19 as well as the crisis at the border wall.

One bill that has received overwhelming support in Congress is the COVID-19 hate crime act. This bill is to help protect Asian Americans and Pacific Islander against the rise in hate crime. Hirono has talked about how she is more aware of her surroundings so she would not become a victim of a hate crime.

“I don’t know any Asian person, Pacific Islander person, who just walks around as though nothing bad might happen,” she said.

As well, due to her experience as being an immigrant, she understands how immigrants at the border wall feel when they come to the United States. Her mother had to leave their youngest boy behind in Japan in the care of his grandparents. She said that the separation  has caused deep rooted trauma into her younger brother.

“We know that when you separate little children from their parents, you are causing huge, lasting, harm to them,” she said in regards to Trump’s policy on separating families.

She also addressed the surge in immigration that has led to a crisis at the border wall. This includes record number of minors that have crossed the border, and 20,000 migrant children in care, many of whom are in detention cells.

Although, she understands why people are upset, she said that Biden wants a humane immigration system. She said that the current system, built by the previous administration, is very inhumane in the way that it treats immigrants.

One way that Biden is addressing the issue is trying to reconnect children with their parents or their vetted sponsors. However, she said that something such as that will take time to finish.

“In order to build a healthy and humane immigration system, that will take time,” she said (9:31).