IV 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 220 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding past 

genocides, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 22, 2017 

Mr. TROTT (for himself, Mr. SCHIFF, Mr. VALADAO, Ms. SPEIER, Mr. PALLONE, Ms. JUDY CHU of California, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Mr. BILIRAKIS, 

Mr. SARBANES, Mr. ROYCE of California, Mr. ENGEL, Ms. CLARK of 

Massachusetts, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. CARBAJAL, Ms. ESHOO, and Mr. 

COSTA) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 

Committee on Foreign Affairs 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives 

regarding past genocides, and for other purposes. 

Whereas the lessons of past genocides should be applied to 

help prevent future war crimes, crimes against humanity, 

and genocide; 

Whereas, on March 17, 2016, the Department of State declared that ‘‘Da’esh is responsible for genocide against 

groups in areas under its control, including Yezidis, 

Christians, and Shia Muslims’’, and is ‘‘also responsible 

for crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing directed 

at these same groups and in some cases against Sunni 

Muslims and Kurds and other minorities’’; 


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•HRES 220 IH 

Whereas the House of Representatives, on March 14, 2016, 

passed H. Con. Res. 75, which concluded that ‘‘the atrocities perpetrated by ISIL against Christians, Yezidis, and 

other religious and ethnic minorities in Iraq and Syria 

constitute war crimes, crimes against humanity, and 

genocide’’; 

Whereas the Senate, on July 7, 2016, passed S. Res. 340, 

which concluded that ‘‘the atrocities perpetrated by the 

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) against 

Christians, Yezidis, Shi’a, and other religious and ethnic 

minorities in Iraq and Syria constitute war crimes, 

crimes against humanity, and genocide’’; 

Whereas the United States has a proud record of protesting 

and providing relief to Armenian and other Christian survivors of the Ottoman Empire’s genocidal campaign; 

Whereas President Woodrow Wilson encouraged the formation of the Near East Relief, chartered by an Act of Congress, which raised $116,000,000 (over $2,500,000,000 

in 2017 dollars) between 1915 and 1930, the Senate 

adopted resolutions condemning these massacres, and 

United States diplomats organized and led protests of 

these crimes; 

Whereas the United States is on record as having officially 

recognized the Armenian Genocide, in the United States 

Government’s May 28, 1951, written statement to the 

International Court of Justice regarding the Convention 

on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, through President Ronald Reagan’s April 22, 1981, 

Proclamation No. 4838, and by House Joint Resolution 

148, adopted on April 8, 1975, and House Joint Resolution 247, adopted on September 10, 1984; and 


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•HRES 220 IH 

Whereas the proper commemoration and consistent condemnation of the Armenian Genocide will strengthen our 

international standing in preventing modern day genocides: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Rep2 resentatives that the United States, in seeking to prevent 

3 war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide 

4 against Christians, Yezidis, Muslims, Kurds, and other 

5 vulnerable religious and ethnic groups in the Middle East, 

6 should draw upon relevant lessons of the United States 

7 Government, civil society, and humanitarian response to 

8 the Armenian Genocide, Seyfo, and the broader genocidal 

9 campaign by the Ottoman Empire against Armenians, As10 syrians, Chaldeans, Syriacs, Greeks, Pontians and other 

11 Christians upon their biblical era homelands. 

Æ 


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