I am his voice in the House and I am very proud that he gave me this opportunity to write the bill in the House. These young women came from California to Washington D.C. to make an important contribution and sadly their memories of Washington D.C. will forever be darkened by that experience. Women must take extraordinary precautions to protect themselves against assault in this city. I have no car in Washington D.C. and love to walk, but when darkness falls, I rarely walk home. A 1989 study found that largely due to the fear of rape, a woman is eight times more likely than a man to avoid walking in her own neighborhood after dark.
Women are also less likely to use public transit and walk near parks alone after dark.
Women are restricted from living full lives because of their fear of violence. In fact, the fear of attack is so strong that a record number of women are joining the ranks of those who own handguns for protection. Mr. Chairman, I am especially concerned about this latest development. As you and I both know, owning a handgun is not the answer to ending violence. However, it does show the degree to which women feel unsafe in our communities and the extent to which we have failed to address those fears by enacting real solutions.