[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 628 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 628

            Recognizing the Transgender Day of Remembrance.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           November 16, 2017

  Mr. Kennedy (for himself, Mr. McEachin, Ms. Norton, Ms. Speier, Mr. 
 Quigley, and Mr. Grijalva) submitted the following resolution; which 
             was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
            Recognizing the Transgender Day of Remembrance.

Whereas in 1998 Rita Hester, a transgender woman of color was murdered, and her 
        murder has yet to be solved;
Whereas the following year Gwendolyn Ann Smith created the first Transgender Day 
        of Remembrance in honor of Rita Hester and other transgender people who 
        had lost their lives to violence;
Whereas 42 percent of transgender people in the United States have reported 
        mistreatment by health care providers;
Whereas nearly half of the transgender community in the United States has been 
        verbally harassed and nearly one in ten has been physically attacked;
Whereas nearly a third of transgender people in the United States had 
        experienced homelessness in 2015;
Whereas 15 percent of transgender people in the United States who were employed 
        in 2015 were verbally harassed, physically attacked, or sexually 
        assaulted at work because of their gender identity or expression;
Whereas around the world, countries outlaw transgender people living as their 
        authentic selves;
Whereas almost half of all transgender people in the United States will attempt 
        suicide at one point in their lifetime, a rate that is eight times 
        higher than the rest of the United States population;
Whereas the United States has one of the highest rates of murder of transgender 
        people;
Whereas, as of November 20, 2017, at least 25 transgender people have been 
        killed as a result of hate, fear, and violent attacks in 2017;
Whereas there is significant incidence of misgendering or misnaming transgender 
        victims of crime in police reports, indicating that the number of 
        transgender victims of violence and murder is likely far higher than 
        what is officially reported, and local law enforcement is not required 
        to, and frequently fails to, report hate crimes, including murder, 
        specific to the LGBT community;
Whereas Congress and the executive branch must act to protect and preserve the 
        lives of all minorities through inclusive legislation; and
Whereas transgender Americans are making historic progress, highlighted by 
        nondiscrimination laws enacted in several States and an increasing 
        number of trans elected officials, signaling greater public support for 
        transgender equality and respect for their contributions to society: 
        Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) recognizes and supports the goals and principles of 
        Transgender Day of Remembrance;
            (2) supports an increase in the amount and accuracy of 
        Federal collection and reporting of data for violence against 
        transgender people; and
            (3) calls on Federal and State governments to study, 
        respond to, and prevent violence against transgender people.
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