Senator Frank Murkowski (R)
former Governor of Alaska

In Frank Atonio v. Wards Cove Packing Co., plaintiffs alleged that the defendant, a Seattle company which cans fish in Alaska, illegally segregated bunkhouses, mess halls and jobs according to race.  Plaintiffs were Asian-American and Native-American cannery workers.  On appeal, the Supreme Court interpreted the civil rights laws in a way which disfavored the plaintiffs, Wards Cove Packing Co. v. Atonio, 490 U.S. 642 (1989).  The Civil Rights Act of 1991 overturned this interpretation so that it no longer applied to any civil rights cases pending upon the enactment of the Act.

However, Senator Murkowski introduced an amendment which exempted the Wards Cove Packing Company, a large employer in Alaska, from the Civil Rights Act.  Due to Senator Murkowski’s amendment, the overturned interpretation applied only to the detriment of Mr. Atonio and the other 2,000 Asian-American and Native-American class members.  At the bidding of Wards Cove Packing Co., Senator Murkowski screwed the Asian-American and Native-American plaintiffs.

Defeated in re-election bid
2006 Primary Results:
Palin (R): 51%
Binkley (R): 30%
Murkowski (R): 19%

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