Letter to Congress: Do Not Revive the China Initiative

Dear Majority Leader Schumer, Minority Leader McConnell, Speaker Johnson, and Democratic Leader Jeffries,

We write to strongly oppose any legislation that seeks to reinstate the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) China Initiative. Specifically, we urge members of Congress to–

• Oppose H.R. 1398, As the House prepares to vote on the The Protect America’s Innovation and Economic Security from CCP Act of 2024, we urge members to vote NO. This bill would functionally re-establish the China Initiative in all but name. 
• Strike language in the CJS appropriations report that directs DOJ to re-establish the China Initiative. As Congress prepares to enter into the conference process to resolve differences between the House and Senate’s appropriations bills, we urge members to strike language directing the Department of Justice (DOJ) to reinstate the National Security Division (NSD)’s “China Initiative” in the Joint Explanatory Statement (JES) on the report for H.R. 9026, Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies (CJS) Appropriations Act, 2025. This problematic language would establish an “office dedicated to countering espionage and influence efforts” in the National Security Division of the Department of Justice (DOJ) with a goal of targeting such efforts in “American businesses, research institutions, and academia emanating from the PRC.” This JES provision is simply an attempt to reinstate the “China Initiative” by another name, and target scholars, scientists, and academics with any perceived connections with China . We urge our leaders to remove this section and oppose any reinstatement of the “China Initiative” or any iterations.

Under the China Initiative, concerns of federal agencies profiling and targeting Asian American scholars, scientists, and researchers based on their race, ethnicity, national origin, and/or religious beliefs over the past decade intensified. The program was launched in 2018 with the alleged purpose of combating economic espionage and trade secret theft. While there are legitimate concerns about the activities of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) government, the PRC government has been conflated with people of Chinese origin or ancestry, including U.S. citizens. The United States has a long and dark history of scapegoating Asian Americans as “perpetual foreigners” and “threats,” from the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 to the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II, and the racist rhetoric spread by government officials about the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic. We urge you to reject any such attempt to scapegoat the Asian American community.  

Many of our organizations welcomed the DOJ’s review and termination of the flawed “China Initiative” in 2022, and recognized this as a crucial step towards addressing the historic and long standing concerns of bias against and profiling of Asian Americans. Reinstating the “China Initiative” or any iteration would be a dangerous step back, reversing the progress made to address these civil rights concerns. Moreover, the “China Initiative” diverted crucial resources away from investigating national security threats and economic espionage to instead focus on people who had a “nexus to China.” Even former U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling, who prosecuted “China Initiative” cases, conceded that the program “lost its focus.” This misguided approach led to costly, time consuming, and abusive investigations and prosecutions of Asian American scholars and researchers, who were not suspected of being PRC or CCP agents or threats to the national security or economic well-being of the United States, but rather engaging in everyday academic research.

The increasing scrutiny of scientists, researchers, and scholars, along with xenophobic and anti-China rhetoric from government officials, have further fueled anti-Asian hate and violence against Asian Americans, as well as divisions in the workplace across the country. The “China Initiative” further created a chilling effect for Asian American scholars and scientists for fear of prosecution, deterring them from engaging in normal activities such as applying for federal grants, conducting research, or even traveling with family. A report published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) by Asian American Scholar Forum scientists shed light on the widespread fear experienced by scientists of Chinese descent in the U.S. during the course of their routine research and academic activities. In that report, 89% of respondents said they would like to contribute to the U.S. leadership in science and technology, but 72% feel unsafe in the U.S. and 61% feel pressure to leave the U.S. Professors were deterred from normal activities with 42% feeling fearful of conducting research, and 45% intending to avoid federal grant applications, especially senior faculty, mainly due to fear. 

Terminating the “China Initiative” was a critical step towards alleviating this chilling effect and rebuilding trust between the Asian American and scholar community and our government to the benefit of all. Reinstating the “China Initiative” or any similar program would impede this process and exacerbate the existing chilling effect, discouraging talented scholars and scientists from contributing to U.S. scientific innovation, and may result in significant loss of talent. This would  hamper America’s scientific progress and innovation, and hurt our country’s ability to remain a global leader in science and technology, to the detriment of all.

Furthermore, the “China Initiative” irreparably harmed the lives of many Chinese American scholars, including Drs. Anming Hu and Gang Chen. Dr. Anming Hu was indicted and arrested on February 27, 2020 under the China Initiative. The government accused Dr. Hu of wire fraud and making false statements. Following a mistrial, in July 2021 the government attempted to retry Dr. Hu, but the federal judge dismissed all counts against Dr. Hu and acquitted him on all charges on Sept. 9, 2021. In 2021, FBI agents raided the home of and arrested Dr. Gang Chen, a widely respected mechanical engineering professor and nanotechnologist at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The government accused Dr. Chen of federal grant fraud. Dr. Chen was the subject of a yearlong investigation under the “China Initiative.” Like many other Asian American scientists and researchers, Dr. Chen had his “loyalty” questioned during a press conference and was scapegoated as a national security threat. Dr. Chen’s arrest galvanized a whole country leading to calls of “We Are All Gang Chen.” In January 2022, the DOJ dropped all charges against Dr. Chen, but according to Dr. Chen, “[f]or 371 days, [his] family and [him] went through a living hell.’”

The House has previously attempted to reinstate the “China Initiative” in the House version of the FY 2024 Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies (CJS) Appropriations bill, H.R. 5893. This was met with strong opposition from a coalition of Asian American organizations and allied partners, as well as Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus leaders who aptly called out the dangers of any reinstatement, and the House removed the reinstatement language from the final bill. 

We must ensure that we do not repeat the harms done to Drs. Gang Chen, Anming Hu, and many others targeted under the “China Initiative,” and reject any similar programs. Not only is this in keeping with our American values of freedom from discrimination and pursuit of innovation, but also recognizes the tremendous contributions of Asian American scholars, who must  not be collateral damage to U.S.-China tensions.

We urge you again to reject any bill that  attempts to reinstate the “China Initiative” or any iterations, and call on our leaders to protect and advance the rights of Asian Americans in our country.

Best Regards,