•HRES 149 EH 
are made to women, and 11 women are chief executive 
officers of Fortune 500 companies; 
Whereas in the United States, women are graduating from 
high school at higher rates and are earning bachelors de-
grees or higher degrees at greater rates than men, with 
88 percent of women between the ages of 25 and 29 hav-
ing obtained a high school diploma and 31 percent of 
women between the ages of 25 and 29 earning a bach-
elors degree or higher; 
Whereas despite tremendous gains, women still face political 
and economic obstacles, struggle for basic rights, face the 
threat of discrimination, and are targets of violence all 
over the world; 
Whereas worldwide women remain vastly underrepresented in 
national and local assemblies, accounting on average for 
less than 10 percent of the seats in parliament, except for 
in East Asia where the figure is approximately 18 to 19 
percent, and in no developing region do women hold more 
than 8 percent of the ministerial positions; 
Whereas women work two-thirds of the world’s working hours 
and produce half of the world’s food, yet earn only 1 per-
cent of the world’s income and own less than 1 percent 
of the world’s property; 
Whereas in the United States between 1995 and 2000, fe-
male managers earned less than their male counterparts 
in the 10 industries that employ the vast majority of all 
female employees; 
Whereas of the 1,300,000,000 people living in poverty around 
the world, 70 percent are women and children; 
Whereas according to the United States Agency for Inter-
national Development, two-thirds of the 876,000,000 illit-
•HRES 149 EH 
erate individuals worldwide are women, two-thirds of the 
125,000,000 school-aged children who are not attending 
school worldwide are girls, and girls are less likely to 
complete school than boys; 
Whereas worldwide women account for half of all cases of 
HIV/AIDS, approximately 42,000,000 cases, and in 
countries with high HIV prevalence, young women are at 
a higher risk than young men of contracting HIV; 
Whereas globally, each year over 500,000 women die during 
childbirth and pregnancy; 
Whereas domestic violence causes more deaths and disability 
among women between ages 15 and 44 than cancer, ma-
laria, traffic accidents, and war; 
Whereas worldwide, at least 1 out of every 3 women and girls 
has been beaten in her lifetime; 
Whereas according to the Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention, at least 1 out of every 6 women and girls in 
the United States has been sexually abused in her life-
time; 
Whereas worldwide, 130,000,000 girls and young women 
have been subjected to female genital mutilation and it 
is estimated that 10,000 girls are at risk of being sub-
jected to this practice in the United States; 
Whereas according to the Congressional Research Service and 
the Department of State, illegal trafficking in women and 
children for forced labor, domestic servitude, or sexual 
exploitation involves between 1,000,000 and 2,000,000 
women and children each year, of whom 50,000 are 
transported into the United States; 
Whereas between 75 and 80 percent of the world’s 
27,000,000 refugees are women and children;
•HRES 149 EH 
Whereas in times and places of conflict and war, women and 
girls continue to be the focus of extreme violence and in-
timidation and face tremendous obstacles to legal re-
course and justice; 
Whereas March 8 has become known as International Wom-
en’s Day for the last century, and is a day on which peo-
ple, often divided by ethnicity, language, culture, and in-
come, come together to celebrate a common struggle for 
women’s equality, justice, and peace; and 
Whereas the people of the United States should be encour-
aged to participate in International Women’s Day: Now, 
therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives—
(1) supports the goals of International Women’s 
Day; 
(2) recognizes and honors the women in the United 
States and in other countries who have fought and con-
tinue to struggle for equality in the face of adversity; 
(3) reaffirms its commitment to ending discrimina-
tion and violence against women and girls, to ensuring 
the safety and welfare of women and girls, and to pur-
suing policies that guarantee the basic human rights of 
women and girls both in the United States and in other 
countries; and 
(4) encourages the President to—
(A) reaffirm his commitment to pursue policies 
to protect fundamental human rights and civil lib-
erties, particularly those of women and girls; and
•HRES 149 EH 
(B) issue a proclamation calling upon the peo-
ple of the United States to observe International 
Women’s Day with appropriate programs and ac-
tivities. 
Attest:
Clerk.