Honors the life and impact of Bruce Jun Fan Lee (a martial arts expert and movie actor), an American success story whose legacy of persistence and honor resonates and inspires millions of citizens today.
Recognizes the profound importance of Bruce Lee's teachings as a catalyst for popular culture and Chinese American history in the United States.
[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 654 Introduced in House (IH)]
112th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. RES. 654
Recognizing the immense impact that Bruce Jun Fan Lee had on American
and global popular culture and the important role he played in creating
a bridge between cultures, championing values of self-respect, self-
discipline, and tolerance in our Nation, and pioneering and cultivating
the genres of martial arts, martial arts films, fitness and philosophy
in the United States and the world.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 10, 2012
Mr. Honda (for himself, Mr. Clarke of Michigan, Mr. Faleomavaega, Mr.
Sablan, and Ms. Richardson) submitted the following resolution; which
was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Recognizing the immense impact that Bruce Jun Fan Lee had on American
and global popular culture and the important role he played in creating
a bridge between cultures, championing values of self-respect, self-
discipline, and tolerance in our Nation, and pioneering and cultivating
the genres of martial arts, martial arts films, fitness and philosophy
in the United States and the world.
Whereas Bruce Jun Fan Lee was born in the hour of the Dragon, between 6 and 8
a.m., in the year of the Dragon on November 27, 1940, at the Jackson
Street Hospital in San Francisco, California's Chinatown;
Whereas Bruce Lee returned to his family's homeland at a young age and
experienced firsthand the occupation of Hong Kong by the Japanese during
the World War II years of 1941-1945, and the subsequent hostility and
war that shook the continent;
Whereas Bruce Lee was motivated to learn and master the martial art style of
Wing Chun Gung Fu in order to gain self confidence and overcome repeated
instances of taunting, racism, and gang activity during his youth;
Whereas Bruce Lee's athletic prowess, and his traits of self-discipline and
determination, yielded him success in many other competitions, including
the 1958 Crown Colony Cha Cha Championship in Hong Kong and the 1958
Hong Kong Inter-School Boxing Championship;
Whereas, in April of 1959, with only $100 to his name, Bruce boarded a steamship
in the American Presidents Line and began his voyage back to San
Francisco in the lower decks of the ship, demonstrating unbelievable
courage and belief in America's ability to prosper through hard work;
Whereas Bruce Lee understood the value of education and returned to the United
States to fulfill the requirements for the equivalent of high school
graduation at Edison Technical School in Seattle, Washington, in 1960
while bussing tables and washing dishes to support himself, subsequently
enrolling at the University of Washington;
Whereas Bruce Lee respected and honored the culture of America, and undertook
learning colloquial English with the same dedication as he had his
martial arts training. With a goal of absolute mastery, he applied
himself to learning the idiosyncrasies of speech, becoming proficient
and fluent to the point of helping American students with their English
papers;
Whereas, at the University of Washington Bruce majored in philosophy, his
passion for Gung Fu having inspired a desire to delve into the
philosophical underpinnings of the arts, and he subsequently lectured on
Eastern Philosophy at local high schools and wrote many essays during
those years that relate philosophical principles to martial arts
techniques;
Whereas Bruce taught the art of Gung Fu to support and pay for his education and
he established the Jun Fan Gung Fu Institute in a friend's basement
before expanding to a bigger location in 1963;
Whereas Bruce looked beyond race and background by engaging in an interracial
marriage with Seattle local, Linda Emery, in 1964 and later fathered 2
biracial children in a family he supported and cared for until his
death;
Whereas, in 1965, Bruce's willingness to teach martial arts to non-Chinese
individuals as a way to bridge the cultures angered many in the field,
and forced him to defend himself and his freedom to teach, but victory
in this contest paved the way for a spectacular and revolutionary
discovery of blending physical fitness, Gung Fu and street combat into
what is now called Jeet Kune Do;
Whereas the artistry and beauty of Jeet Kune Do led Bruce to Hollywood, where he
became an authentic face for Chinese Americans and an inspiration to
youth across the world, but despite rampant racism, Bruce's strong,
intelligent, and powerful persona was a means for optimism and hope for
immigrants and fans alike;
Whereas, during the years of 1967-1971, Bruce read and wrote extensively his
thoughts about physical combat, the psychology of fighting, the
philosophical roots of martial arts, and about motivation, self-
actualization and liberation of the individual, teachings that are the
foundation of Jeet Kune Do, and of his legacy that is studied
internationally to this day;
Whereas after suffering a back injury in 1970 and being told he would never do
martial arts again, Bruce worked himself back into peak physical and
mental condition using his own program of self motivation and physical
therapy to recuperate;
Whereas, in the summer of 1971, due to hardships in overcoming stereotypes in
Hollywood, Bruce decided to continue to pursue his dream of being an
actor and supporting his family by going back to Hong Kong, where he had
gained immense fame from his previous work on shows like ``The Green
Hornet'' and became a hero in Hong Kong and a representative of a
success story for the Chinese community in America and of the honor of
both cultures;
Whereas, in 1972, Bruce created his own production company, Concord Films, using
the Hollywood studio model for the first time in Hong Kong and began
writing, directing, producing, acting in, and choreographing his own
films;
Whereas, in 1973, due entirely to his relationships and successes in both
nations, Bruce became a household name through the making of ``Enter the
Dragon'', the first film ever to bridge the Hong Kong and United States
film industries, while overcoming language problems and production
difficulties, but providing a viable and hugely successful link between
the two countries;
Whereas, on July 20, 1973, Bruce fell into a coma as a result of taking pain
medication to combat a minor headache. Unfortunately, Bruce would not
live to see the opening of his film, ``Enter the Dragon'', nor would he
experience the accumulated success of almost 40 years of all his films'
popularity;
Whereas the popularity of Bruce's films sparked a national and international
interest in the study of the martial arts and the genre of the martial
arts action film, creating a proliferation of films and schools, and
inspiring many youths to become more physically fit and philosophically
minded in their daily lives;
Whereas Bruce Lee has been remembered today in many ways, having been named one
of Time magazine's 100 most important people of the 20th century, given
a star on the Hollywood walk of fame, and honored on postage stamps in 8
countries around the world;
Whereas even after Bruce Lee's death, the Bruce Lee Foundation, a nonprofit
501(c)(3) tax exempt organization formed by his wife and daughter,
enriches lives, open minds, and breaks down barriers through the active
proliferation of Bruce Lee's legacy of undaunted optimism in the face of
adversity, unwavering humanism, mental and physical perseverance, and
inspirational presence of mind toward the betterment of our global
community; and
Whereas the Bruce Lee Foundation also applies the legacy of Bruce Lee to the
present day global community, showing how relevant Bruce Lee, his
teachings, his thoughts, and his example still are today through their
scholarship program, educational programs and their goal of building the
Bruce Lee Action Museum (BLAM), an educational facility geared toward
looking at how actions can change and mold our lives for the better:
Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) honors the life and impact of Bruce Jun Fan Lee, an
American success story whose legacy of persistence and honor
resonates and inspires millions of citizens today; and
(2) recognizes the profound importance of Bruce Lee's
teachings as a catalyst for popular culture and Chinese
American history in the United States.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
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