IV 
115TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. RES. 860 
Supporting the goals and ideals of GLSEN’s 2018 national ‘‘Day of Silence’’ 
in bringing attention to anti-lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and 
queer (LGBTQ) name-calling, bullying, and harassment faced by individ-
uals in schools. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 27, 2018 
Mr. ENGEL (for himself, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New 
York, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. MOULTON, Mr. PETERS, Mr. 
LOWENTHAL, Ms. SPEIER, Mr. HASTINGS, Mr. KRISHNAMOORTHI, Ms. 
BARRAGA´N, Mr. PALLONE, Miss RICE of New York, Ms. DEGETTE, Ms. 
NORTON, Mr. KIHUEN, Mr. SEAN PATRICK MALONEY of New York, Mrs. 
LOWEY, Mr. PANETTA, Ms. LEE, Mr. HIGGINS of New York, Mr. 
GUTIE´RREZ, Mr. GALLEGO, Mr. LYNCH, Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Ms. 
VELA´ZQUEZ, Mr. KILMER, Mr. WELCH, Ms. HANABUSA, Ms. SA´NCHEZ, 
Mr. KILDEE, Mr. FOSTER, Mr. SWALWELL of California, Mr. CICILLINE, 
Mr. CARSON of Indiana, Ms. TSONGAS, Mr. YARMUTH, Ms. ESTY of Con-
necticut, Mr. CARTWRIGHT, Mr. POCAN, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, and Mr. 
CORREA) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 
Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the Com-
mittee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by 
the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall with-
in the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
RESOLUTION 
Supporting the goals and ideals of GLSEN’s 2018 national 
‘‘Day of Silence’’ in bringing attention to anti-lesbian, 
gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) name- 
calling, bullying, and harassment faced by individuals 
in schools. 
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•HRES 860 IH 
Whereas the national ‘‘Day of Silence’’ is a day in which stu-
dents take a vow of silence to bring attention to the anti- 
lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer name-call-
ing, bullying, and harassment faced by individuals in 
schools; 
Whereas GLSEN is a national nonprofit organization work-
ing to create safe and affirming learning environments in 
primary and secondary schools nationwide, regardless of 
sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression; 
Whereas GLSEN designates one day of every April as the 
national ‘‘Day of Silence’’; 
Whereas hundreds of thousands of students at thousands of 
schools, domestic and international, have participated in 
the national ‘‘Day of Silence’’ in past years; 
Whereas students experiences of anti-LGBTQ discrimination 
and harassment are not unique but shared worldwide; 
Whereas GLSEN’s 2015 National School Climate Survey il-
lustrates the pervasive harassment and victimization 
faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer 
students by documenting their experiences within the pre-
ceding academic year; 
Whereas 70 percent of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender 
students reported being verbally harassed by their peers 
at school because of their sexual orientation and 54 per-
cent because of their gender expression; 
Whereas 27 percent of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender 
students reported being physically harassed by their peers 
at school because of their sexual orientation and 20 per-
cent because of their gender expression; 
Whereas nearly 13 percent of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and 
transgender students reported being physically assaulted 
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by their peers at school because of their sexual orienta-
tion and 9 percent because of their gender expression; 
Whereas 57 percent of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender 
students reported that they felt unsafe in school due to 
bullying, harassment, and discrimination, and 31.8 per-
cent reported missing at least one entire school day in 
the preceding month because of safety concerns; 
Whereas transgender students were more likely than all other 
students to report feeling unsafe at school due to bul-
lying, harassment, and discrimination; 
Whereas according to the 2015 National Transgender Dis-
crimination Survey, those who identified as transgender 
or gender nonconforming while in grades K through 12 
reported alarming rates of harassment, physical assault, 
and sexual violence so severe that 17 percent of those 
surveyed had to leave school; 
Whereas student academic performance is affected such that 
lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender students who ex-
perienced high levels of verbal harassment because of 
their sexual orientation or gender expression report a 
grade point average nearly a half grade lower than those 
of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender students who 
experienced low levels of such harassment; 
Whereas the presence of supportive staff contributed to a 
range of positive indicators including fewer reports of 
missing school, fewer reports of feeling unsafe, greater 
academic achievement, higher educational aspirations, 
and a greater sense of school belonging; 
Whereas a growing number of States, cities, and local edu-
cation authorities are adopting laws and policies to pro-
hibit name-calling, bullying, harassment, and discrimina-
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tion against students on the basis of their sexual orienta-
tion and gender identity or expression; and 
Whereas every child should be guaranteed an education free 
from name-calling, bullying, harassment, and discrimina-
tion regardless of their sexual orientation and gender 
identity or expression: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) supports the goals and ideals of the national 
‘‘Day of Silence’’ while uplifting the importance of 
supporting lives of LGBTQ students; 
(2) requests that the President issue a procla-
mation calling on the people of the United States to 
observe GLSEN’s national ‘‘Day of Silence’’ with 
appropriate ceremonies, programs, and activities; 
and 
(3) encourages each State, city, and local edu-
cational agency to adopt laws and policies to prohibit 
name-calling, bullying, harassment, and discrimina-
tion against students, teachers, and other school 
staff regardless of their sexual orientation and gen-
der identity or expression, so that the Nation’s 
schools are institutions where all individuals are able 
to focus on learning. 
Æ 
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