K 807: Commemorating Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day on December 7, 2025, in New York State

 Assembly Resolution No. 807 BY: M. of A. Pheffer Amato COMMEMORATING Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day on December 7, 2025, in New York State WHEREAS, It is the custom of this Legislative Body to commemorate significant events which represent turning points in our unique history and which are indelibly etched in the saga of our great Nation; and WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern, and in full accord with its long-standing traditions, this Legislative Body is justly proud to commemorate Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day on December 7, 2025, in New York State; and WHEREAS, On December 7, 1941, the Imperial Japanese Navy launched a surprise attack on the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor on Oahu, Hawaii, destroying 188 aircraft, five battleships, one minelayer and three destroyers, with more than 2,400 dead and 1,100 wounded; and WHEREAS, A decisive victory for the Japanese, the attack on Pearl Harbor spurred the United States into a declaration of war; the country officially entered World War II the following day, when President Franklin Delano Roosevelt addressed a joint session of Congress, calling December 7, 1941, "a date that will live in infamy"; and WHEREAS, Four days after the attack on Pearl Harbor, Japan's allies, Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, declared war on the United States, turning it into a global war and opening up the Atlantic theater; and WHEREAS, Despite the perception of the attack on Pearl Harbor as a devastating blow to America, the three aircraft carriers assigned to the Pacific Fleet, the Enterprise, the Lexington and the Saratoga, remained intact, as did the Navy Yard, Submarine Base and tank farms; and WHEREAS, However, the battleships, Arizona and Oklahoma, and the destroyers, Shaw, Cassin and Downes, were permanently lost and several other battleships were removed from the order of battle to be refitted; and WHEREAS, The attack on Pearl Harbor immediately galvanized a divided nation into action; at the time, public opinion had been moving towards support for entering the war but considerable opposition still remained; and WHEREAS, Overnight, America united against its enemies, and the "sleeping giant" of United States industrial and military capacity was awakened, pouring overwhelming resources into both the Pacific and Atlantic theaters toward final victory over tyranny; and WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body that when events of such historical consequences are brought to our attention, they should be recalled and recognized by all the citizens of the great State of New York; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to commemorate Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day on December 7, 2025, in New York State; and be it further RESOLVED, That copies of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be transmitted to the American Legion Department of New York, the Veterans of Foreign Wars Department of New York, the Military Order of the Purple Heart Department of New York, and the Disabled American Veterans Department of New York.