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 resolu-
tion; 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 inequi-
ties in the United States, especially those present in 
the criminal justice system, must include reforms to ad-
dress 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 ex-
cessive 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 eight- 
fold 
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-initi-
ated contacts than they do arrests suggesting more inter-
actions with law enforcement than arrest records rep-
resent; 
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 per-
cent 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 mil-
lion 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 pros-
ecutors despite representing 20 percent of the population 
as a whole: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Rep-
resentatives that— 
(1) the harm, trauma, and deaths of Black 
women must be recognized alongside Black men; 
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