IV 
114TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 285 
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the United States 
should become an international human rights leader by ratifying and 
implementing certain core international conventions. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 21, 2015 
Mr. LEWIS submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on the Judi-
ciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each 
case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of 
the committee concerned 
RESOLUTION 
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that 
the United States should become an international human 
rights leader by ratifying and implementing certain core 
international conventions. 
Whereas the United States has played a leading role in devel-
oping global human rights standards since the inception 
of the country; 
Whereas the first 10 amendments to the Constitution are 
among the guiding principles that helped develop the 
Universal Declaration of Human Rights; 
Whereas Eleanor Roosevelt, wife of President Franklin Dela-
no Roosevelt, led the United States delegation and the 
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•HRES 285 IH 
United Nations (in this resolution referred to as the 
‘‘UN’’) in drafting the Universal Declaration of Human 
Rights; 
Whereas December 10, 2014, marked the 66th anniversary of 
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; 
Whereas the General Assembly of the UN adopted the Inter-
national Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural 
Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Polit-
ical Rights in 1966; 
Whereas the world celebrated the 208th anniversary of the 
abolition of the transatlantic slave trade on May 1, 2015; 
Whereas, on January 1, 2013, the United States recognized 
the 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation; 
Whereas the United States continues to make legislative 
amendments that improve the rights of all persons in the 
United States, including the 13th Amendment in 1865, 
the Civil Rights Act of 1866, the 14th Amendment, the 
19th Amendment, the Social Security Act of 1935, the 
Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, the Housing Act of 
1949, the Equal Pay Act of 1963, the Civil Rights Act 
of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the Elementary 
and Secondary Education Act of 1965, the Age Discrimi-
nation in Employment Act of 1967, the McKinney-Vento 
Homeless Assistance Act of 1987, the Civil Rights Res-
toration Act of 1988, the Americans with Disabilities Act 
of 1990, the Civil Rights Act of 1991, and the Voting 
Rights Act Reauthorization of 2006; 
Whereas human and civil rights standards and protections re-
quire constant review and attention; 
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•HRES 285 IH 
Whereas the UN Millennium Development Goals set forth a 
15-year plan to combat poverty, hunger, disease, illit-
eracy, environmental degradation, and discrimination; 
Whereas the 43rd General Assembly of the Organization of 
American States adopted the Inter-American Convention 
against Racism, Racial Discrimination and Related 
Forms of Intolerance on June 5, 2013; 
Whereas there are as many as 27,000,000 people around the 
world who are enslaved; 
Whereas the United States has supported the adoption of the 
Universal Declaration of Human Rights in the UN Gen-
eral Assembly and has ratified significant international 
human rights treaties, including the International Con-
ventions on the Elimination of Racism and Discrimina-
tion, on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of 
Genocide, and against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman 
or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and the Inter-
national Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; 
Whereas the United States has ratified two of the eight fun-
damental conventions outlined by the International Labor 
Organization (in this resolution referred to as the 
‘‘ILO’’) including the Abolition of Forced Labour and the 
Prohibition and Immediate Action for the Elimination of 
the Worst Forms of Child Labour; 
Whereas the United States has also ratified the Optional Pro-
tocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the 
Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornog-
raphy and the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the 
Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in 
Armed Conflicts; 
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•HRES 285 IH 
Whereas the United States signed the Convention on the 
Rights of Persons with Disabilities on July 30, 2009; and 
Whereas the United States is expected to be a regional and 
global leader in the international civil and human rights 
movement: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Rep-
resentatives that— 
(1) the United States recommits to fighting dis-
crimination, xenophobia, and human and civil rights 
abuses in both domestic and foreign policy; 
(2) the United States reaffirms its commitment 
to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; 
(3) the United States should give thorough re-
view to domestic policy and legislative proposals that 
would improve the economic, social, political, cul-
tural, and civil rights and lives of marginalized com-
munities within the United States; 
(4) the Senate should give its advice and con-
sent to the ratification of the UN Covenant on Eco-
nomic, Social and Cultural Rights, the UN Conven-
tion on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimina-
tion Against Women and its Optional Protocol, the 
UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, the UN 
Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabil-
ities and its Optional Protocol, the UN Convention 
for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Dis-
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•HRES 285 IH 
appearance, the First Optional Protocol to the UN 
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the Op-
tional Protocol to the UN Convention Against Tor-
ture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treat-
ment or Punishment; 
(5) the Senate should give its advice and con-
sent to the ratification of the ILO Convention on 
Forced or Compulsory Labour, the ILO Convention 
on Freedom of Association and Protection of the 
Right to Organise, the ILO Convention on the Right 
to Organise and Collective Bargaining, the ILO Con-
vention on Equal Remuneration, the ILO Conven-
tion on Discrimination in Respect of Employment 
and Occupation, and the ILO Convention on the 
Minimum Age for Admission to Employment; 
(6) the United States should fully support the 
Inter-American human rights system, especially 
hemispheric conventions regarding the rights of all 
persons, women, children, the disabled, marginalized 
communities, and the right to freedom of expression; 
and 
(7) it is the policy of the United States to op-
pose slavery, torture, racism, discrimination, and 
xenophobia in all forms. 
Æ 
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