The 1990 Institute condemns H.R.1398, legislation that reestablishes the China Initiative

The 1990 Institute continues to strongly condemn efforts to reinstate laws that follow in the footsteps of the failed China Initiative program. 

The Department of Justice ended its China Initiative program in February 2022 (begun in November 2018) and admitted that the program was racially profiling Chinese American citizens and U.S. residents of Chinese heritage. The program was terminated after its failure to uncover cases of national security risks and the admission that it was harming Asian Americans. Several of the alleged espionage and national security cases had ended in acquittal or dismissal or had been dropped without comment. Despite the fact that thousands of scholars and administrators from hundreds of U.S. universities supported ending the program, there have been attempts to revive it. 

On September 11, 2024, “H.R.1398: Protect America’s Innovation and Economic Security from CCP Act of 2024” passed in the U.S. House of Representatives. This legislation explicitly “reestablishes” the racially-motivated China Initiative and “renames it the CCP Initiative.”

Similar to the original China Initiative, this bill is likely to exacerbate the already high levels of discrimination that Asian Americans endure without addressing legitimate national security concerns. Although too often treated as dangerous outsiders, Asian Americans have been a vital and positive part of the fabric of American life for hundreds of years. The 1990 Institute urges both the House and the Senate to reconsider this legislation and its implications.