[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 212 Engrossed in House (EH)]


                 In the House of Representatives, U.S.,

                                                         July 30, 2001.
Whereas since the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948, 
        the international community has taken significant steps to eradicate 
        racism, xenophobia, sexism, religious intolerance, slavery, and other 
        forms of discrimination;
Whereas national and international measures to combat discrimination and promote 
        equality, justice, and dignity for all individuals have proven 
        inadequate;
Whereas the United Nations World Conference Against Racism, Racial 
        Discrimination, Xenophobia, and Related Intolerance (``WCAR''), to be 
        held in Durban, South Africa, from August 31 through September 7, 2001, 
        aims to create a new world vision for the fight against racism and other 
        forms of intolerance in the twenty-first century, urge participants to 
        adopt anti-discrimination policies and practices, and establish a 
        mechanism for monitoring future progress toward a discrimination-free 
        world;
Whereas the causes and manifestations of contemporary racism, xenophobia, 
        sexism, religious intolerance, slavery, and other forms of 
        discrimination are many and increasingly complex and subtle;
Whereas all states and societies that have sponsored, encouraged, or tolerated 
        slavery, including states involved in the transatlantic slave trade, the 
        Indian Ocean slave trade, or the trans-Saharan slave trade, benefited 
        economically while inflicting extreme pain, suffering, and humiliation 
        on millions of African people;
Whereas victims of racism, xenophobia, sexism, religious intolerance, slavery, 
        and other forms of discrimination have suffered and continue to suffer 
        from the deprivation of their fundamental rights and opportunities;
Whereas to varying degrees, states, societies, and individuals have adopted the 
        notion that racial, cultural, religious, and social diversity can enrich 
        a country and its citizens;
Whereas participants of the WCAR currently plan to discuss remedies, redress, 
        and other mechanisms to provide recourse at national, regional, and 
        international levels for victims of racism, xenophobia, sexism, 
        religious intolerance, slavery, and other forms of discrimination;
Whereas the achievement of full and effective equality between peoples requires 
        that states, civic groups, and individuals cooperate to address the real 
        difficulties in attaining societies free of discrimination;
Whereas some preparatory materials for the WCAR take positions on current 
        political crises which, if adopted in the final WCAR Declaration and 
        Program of Action, could exacerbate existing tensions;
Whereas the attempt by some to use the WCAR as a platform to resuscitate the 
        divisive and discredited notion equating Zionism with racism, a notion 
        that was overwhelmingly rejected when United Nations Resolution 3379 
        (1975) was rescinded in 1991, would undermine the goals and objectives 
        of the conference; and
Whereas the United States encourages respect for an individual's human rights 
        and fundamental freedoms without distinction of any kind, such as race, 
        color, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or 
        social origin, property, birth, or other status: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) encourages all participants in the United Nations World 
        Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia, and 
        Related Intolerance (``WCAR'') to seize this singular opportunity to 
        tackle the scourges of racism, xenophobia, sexism, religious 
        intolerance, slavery, and other forms of discrimination which have 
        divided people and wreaked immeasurable suffering on the disempowered;
            (2) recognizes that since racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia, 
        and related intolerance exist to some extent in every region and country 
        around the world, efforts to address these prejudices should occur 
        within a global framework and without reference to specific regions, 
        countries, or present-day conflicts;
            (3) exhorts the participants to utilize the WCAR to mitigate, rather 
        than aggravate, racial, ethnic, and regional tensions;
            (4) urges the WCAR to focus on concrete steps that may be taken to 
        address gross human rights violations that were motivated by racially 
        and ethnically based animus and on devising strategies to help eradicate 
        such intolerance; and
            (5) commends the efforts of the Government of the Republic of South 
        Africa in hosting the WCAR.
            Attest:

                                                                          Clerk.