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103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. J. RES. 302

Designating 1994 through 1999 as the ‘‘Years of the Girl Child’’.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

NOVEMBER 22, 1993

Ms. FURSE (for herself, Ms. SNOWE, Ms. MCKINNEY, Ms. VELA ́ZQUEZ, Mr.

ANDREWS of Maine, Mr. BARRETT of Wisconsin, Mr. BECERRA, Mr.

BEILENSON, Mr. BILBRAY, Mr. BISHOP, Mr. BONIOR, Ms. BYRNE, Mrs.

CLAYTON, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. COPPERSMITH, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mr. DELLUMS, Mr. DE LUGO, Ms. ESHOO, Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA, Mr. FAZIO, Mr.

FISH, Mr. FOGLIETTA, Mr. FROST, Mr. GIBBONS, Mr. GREENWOOD, Mr.

HINCHEY, Mr. HUGHES, Mr. HUTTO, Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of

Texas, Mr. KASICH, Mr. LANCASTER, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, Mr. LIPINSKI, Mrs. LLOYD, Mrs. LOWEY, Mr. MARTINEZ, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Mr.

MCNULTY, Mrs. MEEK, Mr. MINGE, Mrs. MINK, Mr. MOAKLEY, Mrs.

MORELLA, Mr. NADLER, Ms. NORTON, Mr. OBERSTAR, Mr. OLVER, Mr.

PASTOR, Ms. PELOSI, Mr. PETERSON of Minnesota, Mr. RANGEL, Mr.

RAVENEL, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, Mr. SCOTT, Mr. SERRANO, Mr. TOWNS,

Mrs. UNSOELD, Mr. VALENTINE, Mr. WALSH, Mr. WASHINGTON, Ms.

WATERS, Mr. WAXMAN, and Ms. WOOLSEY) introduced the following

joint resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Post Office and

Civil Service

JOINT RESOLUTION

Designating 1994 through 1999 as the ‘‘Years of the Girl

Child’’.
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Whereas girls are the most neglected, deprived, and mistreated human resource worldwide;

Whereas girls are frequently condemned to a cycle of poverty,

illiteracy, unwanted pregnancy, and poor health;

Whereas girls across the developing world are fed less, withdrawn from school earlier, forced into hard labor sooner,

and given less medical care than are boys;

Whereas numerous studies indicate that girls are handicapped not only by the perception that they are temporary members of a family, but also by the belief that

boys will be the chief breadwinners and, therefore, are

more deserving of scarce resources;

Whereas parents in some regions of the developing world resort to infanticide rather than use the family resources

to raise girl children;

Whereas girls in some regions of the world become pregnant

at the onset of puberty and continue to become pregnant

at intervals that damage their health and increase the

chances of complications during pregnancy;

Whereas girls with at least a 7th grade education have 1⁄2 as

many pregnancies as girls with less schooling;

Whereas studies indicate that infant deaths decline by 20

percent when girls in developing countries have as little

as 4 to 6 years of school;

Whereas the World Health Organization estimates that improved education for girls and family planning services

for women (including girls) would reduce maternal deaths

by 15 to 33 percent;

Whereas the World Fertility Survey indicates that a girl’s age

at marriage increases with the number of years she has
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spent in school and that she is more apt to marry at 22

than at 17 with even as little as 7 years of education;

Whereas girls in the United States still receive an unequal

education in our Nation’s schools, by any measure—test

scores, curriculum, or teacher-student interaction;

Whereas girls in the United States and abroad are exploited

as the victims of sexual abuse and child prostitution; and

Whereas the most recent study of child sexual abuse in the

United States shows that, of the cases reported, 23 percent of the victims were boys and 77 percent were girls:

Now, therefore, be it

1 Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives

2 of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 That 1994 through 1999 are designated as the ‘‘Years of

4 the Girl Child’’, and the President of the United States

5 is authorized and requested to issue a proclamation calling

6 upon all United States missions in foreign countries, all

7 United States diplomatic personnel, the Secretary of Edu8 cation, and the Secretary of Health and Human Services

9 to encourage equality for girls in health care, education,

10 and all phases of family and community life.

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