IV 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 854 

Affirming a commitment to elevate the voices, leadership, and needs of historically and currently disenfranchised and underserved communities in the 

effort to end sexual violence and support all survivors of sexual violence, 

including immigrant survivors, survivors with disabilities, survivors of 

color, survivors of child sexual abuse, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and 

transgender survivors. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 26, 2018 

Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN (for herself, Mrs. LAWRENCE, Ms. CLARKE of New 

York, Mr. BROWN of Maryland, Mr. FOSTER, Ms. ADAMS, Ms. CLARK

of Massachusetts, Mr. NOLAN, Ms. MICHELLE LUJAN GRISHAM of New 

Mexico, Mr. GARAMENDI, Mrs. DINGELL, Mrs. TORRES, Mr. ELLISON, 

Mr. MCNERNEY, Mr. SABLAN, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. BISHOP

of Georgia, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. VARGAS, Ms. SPEIER, Mr. HASTINGS, 

Ms. ESTY of Connecticut, Ms. KUSTER of New Hampshire, Mr. SIRES, 

Mr. COHEN, Ms. MOORE, and Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia) submitted 

the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each 

case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of 

the committee concerned 

RESOLUTION 

Affirming a commitment to elevate the voices, leadership, 

and needs of historically and currently disenfranchised 

and underserved communities in the effort to end sexual 

violence and support all survivors of sexual violence, including immigrant survivors, survivors with disabilities, 


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survivors of color, survivors of child sexual abuse, and 

lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender survivors. 

Whereas sexual violence is a tool of oppression and a form 

of discrimination that can deprive individuals of equal access to educational opportunities; 

Whereas discrimination on the basis of sex includes discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, 

sex stereotypes, pregnancy, termination of pregnancy, 

childbirth, and related medical conditions; 

Whereas the 2015 United States Transgender Survey found 

that— 

(1) 47 percent of transgender people are sexually assaulted; and 

(2) among transgender people of color, 65 percent of 

Native Americans, 59 percent of multiracial people, 58 

percent of Middle Eastern people, and 53 percent of African Americans are likely to have been sexually assaulted; 

Whereas the 2010 Centers for Disease Control National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey found that— 

(1) 44 percent of lesbians and 61 percent of bisexual 

women experience rape, physical violence, or stalking by 

an intimate partner, compared to 35 percent of heterosexual women; and 

(2) 40 percent of gay men and 47 percent of bisexual men have experienced sexual violence other than rape, 

compared to 21 percent of heterosexual men; 

Whereas the National Women’s Law Center 2017 Let Her 

Learn Survey found that 38 percent of lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender teen girls reported experiencing 

sexual violence compared to 21 percent of all girls; 


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Whereas data reveals that people with disabilities are at an 

increased risk of being sexually assaulted; 

Whereas according to End Rape on Campus, children with 

disabilities are 2.9 times more likely than children without disabilities to be sexually abused; 

Whereas according to the Vera Institute of Justice, 83 percent of women and 32 percent of men with cognitive disabilities reported being victims of sexual assault; 

Whereas women of all races and ethnicities face some risk of 

sexual assault, and according to the 2010 Centers for 

Disease Control National Intimate Partner and Sexual 

Violence Survey, 33 percent of multiracial non-Hispanic 

women, nearly 27 percent of indigenous women, 22 percent of Black women, nearly 19 percent of White nonHispanic women, more than 14 percent of Hispanic 

women, and 7 percent of Asian American and Pacific Islander women in the United States have experienced 

rape; 

Whereas according to a research report by the National Institute of Justice, 56.1 percent of American Indian and 

Alaska Native women have experienced sexual violence; 

Whereas sexual violence also affects adolescent girls, and according to the National Women’s Law Center 2017 Let 

Her Learn Survey, 1 in 5 girls aged 14 to 18 has been 

kissed or touched without consent, including 24 percent 

of Latina girls, 23 percent of Native American girls, and 

22 percent of Black girls; 

Whereas studies show that sexual violence is an underreported crime, indicating that the rates of sexual violence may be even higher than these estimates; 


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Whereas too many survivors from historically and currently 

disenfranchised and underserved communities are ignored, blamed, and cast aside when seeking support after 

experiencing a form of sexual violence; 

Whereas, according to the Department of Justice, 31 percent 

of young women in the juvenile justice system have been 

sexually abused; 

Whereas youth of color, youth with disabilities, and youth 

who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or 

gender non-conforming are overrepresented in the child 

welfare system; 

Whereas, according to the GLSEN 2015 National School Climate Survey— 

(1) 59.6 percent of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (referred to in this preamble as 

‘‘LGBTQ’’) secondary students have been sexually harassed at school and are more likely to experience sexual 

harassment than non-LGBTQ students; and 

(2) students with nontraditional gender expression 

are more likely to experience sexual harassment than students with traditional gender expression; 

Whereas high-quality sexuality education is critical in the effort to eliminate sexual violence by teaching young people 

about sexual assault, harassment, and consent; 

Whereas less than half of all high schools and only 20 percent of middle schools in the United States teach all of 

the topics identified by the Centers for Disease Control 

and Prevention as important sexual health education topics; 

Whereas, according to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National 

Network, there is an increased likelihood that an indiVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:44 Apr 27, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR854.IH HR854

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vidual will suffer from suicidal or depressive thoughts 

after experiencing sexual violence; 

Whereas, at a time of prioritized mass detention and deportation and the rescinding of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program, it is less safe for immigrants to 

report sexual violence; 

Whereas a history of systemic inequality and discrimination 

as well as incomplete solutions has resulted in a lack of 

resources to meet the needs of diverse survivor populations; 

Whereas according to the National Alliance to End Sexual 

Violence— 

(1) there is a lack of resources for sexual violence 

prevention for youth; 

(2) many rape crisis centers have waiting lists for 

prevention programs; and 

(3) more investment is needed in the Rape Prevention and Education Program; 

Whereas April is National Sexual Assault Awareness Month; 

Whereas sexual violence will only end if survivors of color, 

lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender survivors, survivors with disabilities, and immigrant survivors are respected and supported; 

Whereas current support systems mandated by Federal law 

for survivors of sexual violence are neither comprehensive 

nor fully representative of the vast and pervasive elements within rape culture; and 

Whereas Congress is working to confront pervasive sexual violence in the workplace, in schools, and in every area of 

life: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 


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1 (1) affirms a commitment to elevate the voices, 

2 leadership, and needs of historically and currently 

3 disenfranchised and underserved communities in the 

4 effort to end sexual violence and support all sur5 vivors of sexual violence, including immigrant sur6 vivors, survivors with disabilities, survivors of color, 

7 American Indian or Alaska Native survivors, queer 

8 and intersex survivors, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, 

9 and transgender survivors; 

10 (2) supports efforts to raise awareness of the 

11 history of sexual violence prevention programs; 

12 (3) calls upon this Chamber to— 

13 (A) give priority to the needs of survivors 

14 of sexual violence and demonstrate proactive 

15 leadership in the effort to end sexual violence; 

16 and 

17 (B) reject rollbacks of protections against 

18 harassment under— 

19 (i) title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 

20 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.), which 

21 prohibits discrimination in education pro22 grams based on race, color, or national ori23 gin; 

24 (ii) title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 

25 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.), which proVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:44 Apr 27, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HR854.IH HR854

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1 hibits discrimination in employment based 

2 on race, color, national origin, sex (includ3 ing sexual orientation and gender identity), 

4 or religion; 

5 (iii) title IX of the Education Amend6 ments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.), 

7 which prohibits discrimination in education 

8 programs based on sex, including sexual 

9 orientation, gender identity, and 

10 transgender status; 

11 (iv) titles I and II of the Americans 

12 with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

13 12111 et seq.), which prohibit discrimina14 tion based on disability in employment and 

15 public schools, respectively; and 

16 (v) section 504 of the Rehabilitation 

17 Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794), which pro18 hibits discrimination based on disability in 

19 education programs; 

20 (4) affirms that— 

21 (A) title IX of the Education Amendments 

22 of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.), title II of the 

23 Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 

24 U.S.C. 12131 et seq.), section 504 of the Reha25 bilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794), and 


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1 title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 

2 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.) intersect; and 

3 (B) to address sexual violence in an edu4 cational setting, these comprehensive civil rights 

5 laws must be viewed as intersecting and per6 taining to both sexual violence and educational 

7 access; 

8 (5) affirms the pursuit of legislative solutions 

9 that— 

10 (A) address the unique needs and experi11 ences of survivors of sexual violence from his12 torically and currently disenfranchised and un13 derserved communities; 

14 (B) allocate resources based on the needs 

15 and vulnerability of diverse survivor popu16 lations; and 

17 (C) allocate resources for disaggregated re18 search initiatives that shed light on the dis19 proportionate levels of sexual violence and the 

20 impact of sexual violence on diverse survivor 

21 populations; and 

22 (6) calls upon the executive branch to faithfully 

23 and robustly enforce laws that protect survivors of 

24 sexual violence and communities at higher risk of 


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•HRES 854 IH 

1 sexual violence from harassment, discrimination, and 

2 mistreatment. 

Æ 


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