IV 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 1027 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the wrongs and 

hardships of Black women are often equal to those experienced by Black 

men yet receive less attention and justice, and that any legislation passed 

in the House of Representatives to remedy racial inequities in the United 

States, especially those present in the criminal justice system, must 

include reforms to address concerns for Black women. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 26, 2020 

Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN (for herself, Ms. KELLY of Illinois, Ms. CLARKE of 

New York, Mr. BUTTERFIELD, Ms. NORTON, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. 

DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois, Mr. TONKO, Ms. MOORE, Mr. MCEACHIN, 

Mr. SMITH of Washington, Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts, Ms. TLAIB, Ms. 

BLUNT ROCHESTER, Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York, Mr. 

LAWSON of Florida, Ms. PINGREE, Mrs. BEATTY, Ms. JOHNSON of 

Texas, Mr. LOWENTHAL, and Ms. OMAR) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that 

the wrongs and hardships of Black women are often 

equal to those experienced by Black men yet receive 

less attention and justice, and that any legislation passed 

in the House of Representatives to remedy racial inequities in the United States, especially those present in 

the criminal justice system, must include reforms to address concerns for Black women. 


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•HRES 1027 IH 

Whereas social justice and criminal reform movements of the 

past few decades have often focused on or sprung out of 

protests of violence or against Black men and boys, yet 

Black women and girls are also frequent victims of such 

violence and harassment but do not receive the same 

media attention, public condemnation, or calls for justice; 

Whereas the Black women victims of State violence and excessive force are often forgotten, if they are ever made 

public in the first place, and include names such as 

Breonna Taylor, Sandra Bland, Atatianna Jefferson, 

Pamela Turner, Alexia Christian, Mya Hall, Gabriella 

Nevarez, Shantel Davis, Malissa Williams, Shelly Frey, 

Kathryn Johnston, Alberta Spruill, Natasha McKenna, 

Sheneque Proctor, Rekia Boyd, Aiyana Stanley-Jones, 

Meagan Hockaday, Denise Stewart, Roasann Miller, 

Alesia Thomas, Korryn Gaines, Nina Pop, Yvette Smith, 

Tarika Wilson, and Kendra James, alongside countless 

others; 

Whereas Black women are often leaders in the fight for 

rights, social justice, and equality for all people, such as 

Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi, who 

founded the Black Lives Matter movement in the wake 

of the murder of Trayvon Martin; 

Whereas the incarcerated female population has grown eightfold due to stiffer drug sentencing laws and 

postconviction barriers to reentry that uniquely affect 

women; 

Whereas Black girls are 10 times more likely to be disciplined 

and 6 times more likely to be suspended than their White 

counterparts; 


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•HRES 1027 IH 

Whereas women represent a growing share of all arrests in 

the country as arrests of men decline; 

Whereas women account for a larger share of all police-initiated contacts than they do arrests suggesting more interactions with law enforcement than arrest records represent; 

Whereas Black women are approximately 17 percent more 

likely to be stopped in a police-initiated traffic stop than 

White women; 

Whereas Black women are roughly three times as likely to be 

arrested during traffic stop than White women; 

Whereas Black women are more likely than White men and 

three times as likely as White women to experience the 

use of force during police-initiated stops; 

Whereas police use of force against women rose by 353 percent from 1999 to 2015; 

Whereas the imprisonment rate for African-American women 

is twice that of White women; 

Whereas the average lifetime earnings gap of nearly $1 million between Black women and White men complicates 

reentry and increases the likelihood of recidivism; and 

Whereas there are only 45 elected Black women serving as 

prosecutors, comprising 1.8 percent of all elected prosecutors despite representing 20 percent of the population 

as a whole: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Rep2 resentatives that— 

3 (1) the harm, trauma, and deaths of Black 

4 women must be recognized alongside Black men; 


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•HRES 1027 IH 

1 (2) the position of Black women is unique in 

2 this country, and therefore deserves specific, focused 

3 intervention to bring about equality of access, oppor4 tunity, and justice; 

5 (3) any legislation passed in the House of Rep6 resentatives to remedy racial inequities in the United 

7 States, especially those present in the criminal jus8 tice system, must include reforms to address con9 cerns for Black women; and 

10 (4) the creation of a commission to study the 

11 status of Black women and girls, and the social and 

12 systemic barriers they face, would aid in reducing 

13 those barriers, and identifying reforms that would 

14 encourage more fair and equal treatment for Black 

15 women and all people. 

Æ 


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