IV 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 613 

Condemning Secretary Ben Carson’s bigoted comments regarding transgender 

people and decrying the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s continued effort, under Secretary Carson’s leadership, to single 

out and discriminate against LGBTQ individuals. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 1, 2019 

Mr. QUIGLEY (for himself, Ms. HILL of California, Mr. BEYER, Mr. SEAN

PATRICK MALONEY of New York, Ms. VELA ́ZQUEZ, Mr. LOWENTHAL, 

Mr. EVANS, Mr. NADLER, Mr. LUJA ́N, Mr. LARSEN of Washington, Mr. 

ESPAILLAT, Mr. KILDEE, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, 

Mr. KENNEDY, Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Mr. CICILLINE, Mr. 

KHANNA, Ms. TLAIB, Ms. HAALAND, Ms. MOORE, Ms. JAYAPAL, Ms. 

PRESSLEY, Mr. PAPPAS, Mr. PASCRELL, Mr. SWALWELL of California, 

Mr. VEASEY, Mr. GREEN of Texas, Mr. MOULTON, Ms. ESCOBAR, Mr. 

HIGGINS of New York, Mr. PALLONE, Ms. SPEIER, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. 

NORTON, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, Mr. MCEACHIN, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Ms. 

SCANLON, and Mrs. LAWRENCE) submitted the following resolution; 

which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services 

RESOLUTION 

Condemning Secretary Ben Carson’s bigoted comments regarding transgender people and decrying the Department 

of Housing and Urban Development’s continued effort, 

under Secretary Carson’s leadership, to single out and 

discriminate against LGBTQ individuals. 


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•HRES 613 IH 

Whereas the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is responsible for safeguarding and serving 

the most vulnerable among us; 

Whereas the Secretary of HUD, Benjamin S. Carson, Sr., 

made statements to HUD employees in San Francisco regarding transgender people; 

Whereas in those statements, Secretary Carson referred to 

transgender women as ‘‘big, hairy men’’ and accused 

them of pretending to be women to access women’s shelters; 

Whereas those statements are incredibly disrespectful and reflect bigoted, outdated thinking that is both offensive and 

counterproductive to the mission of the agency; 

Whereas the Washington Post has reported that Secretary 

Carson has ‘‘repeatedly mocked transgender people in internal meetings in Washington’’; 

Whereas it is the responsibility of the Secretary of HUD, an 

agency with more than 8,000 employees, to ensure a welcoming work environment that fosters productivity on behalf of the American people; 

Whereas the Secretary’s comments and cavalier attitude toward those that HUD is supposed to help has created a 

divisive and demoralizing atmosphere which does not best 

serve the American people; 

Whereas a HUD employee was reportedly applauded as she 

walked out in protest from Secretary Carson’s remarks; 

Whereas these most recent comments are not the first actions 

that Secretary Carson has taken that show a basic disrespect toward LGBTQ people; 


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•HRES 613 IH 

Whereas, in 2015, then-Presidential candidate Carson said, 

‘‘I do not appreciate using our military as a laboratory 

for social experimentation. The last thing we need to be 

doing is saying, ‘What would it be like if we introduced 

several transgender people into this platoon?’ Give me a 

break. Deal with the transgender thing somewhere else.’’; 

Whereas, in 2016, then-Presidential candidate Carson said, 

‘‘Boys who say, ‘I feel like a girl today, I want to go into 

the girl’s lavatory’—that is such a bunch of garbage. If 

we continue to cater to that, where will it lead? Where 

will it lead us to be? I mean, it’s beyond ridiculous that 

you take the most abnormal situation and then you make 

everyone else conform to it . . . when we start trying to 

impose the extra rights based on a few people who perhaps are abnormal, where does that lead?’’; 

Whereas, in 2017, HUD removed resource documents designed to help emergency homeless shelters and other 

housing providers comply with HUD nondiscrimination 

policies regarding LGBT service recipients; 

Whereas despite repeated interactions with Congress, both in 

hearings and otherwise, HUD left this guidance in limbo 

for nearly two years before finally announcing, with flimsy justification, it would not repost or replace it at all; 

Whereas, in May of 2019, Secretary Carson testified in front 

of the Financial Services Committee of the House of 

Representatives that HUD had no intention of eliminating the crucial Equal Access Rule one day before 

HUD proposed a new rule that would essentially gut it; 

and 


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•HRES 613 IH 

Whereas Secretary Carson seems committed to ensuring that 

LGBT individuals are unable to exercise even the basic 

rights afforded to all Americans: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) believes that every American, regardless of 

3 religion, race, gender identity sexual orientation, or 

4 any other classification, deserves access to safe and 

5 secure shelter; 

6 (2) questions the ability and commitment of 

7 Secretary Carson to effectively lead the Department 

8 of Housing and Urban Development and its thou9 sands of dedicated employees; and 

10 (3) strongly condemns Secretary Carson’s big11 oted comments regarding transgender people and de12 cries HUD’s continued effort, under Secretary Car13 son’s leadership, to single out and discriminate 

14 against LGBTQ individuals. 

Æ 


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