[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 487 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 487

Affirming a commitment to elevate the voices, leadership, and needs of 
historically and currently disenfranchised and underserved communities 
   in the effort to end sexual violence and support all survivors of 
    sexual violence, including immigrant survivors, survivors with 
  disabilities, survivors of color, American Indian or Alaska Native 
    survivors, survivors of child sexual abuse, queer and intersex 
   survivors, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender survivors.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 26, 2018

Mr. Booker (for himself, Ms. Cortez Masto, Ms. Baldwin, and Ms. Harris) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
                            on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Affirming a commitment to elevate the voices, leadership, and needs of 
historically and currently disenfranchised and underserved communities 
   in the effort to end sexual violence and support all survivors of 
    sexual violence, including immigrant survivors, survivors with 
  disabilities, survivors of color, American Indian or Alaska Native 
    survivors, survivors of child sexual abuse, queer and intersex 
   survivors, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender survivors.

Whereas sexual violence is a tool of oppression and a form of discrimination 
        that can deprive individuals of equal access to educational 
        opportunities;
Whereas discrimination on the basis of sex includes discrimination on the basis 
        of sexual orientation, gender identity, sex stereotypes, pregnancy, 
        termination of pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions;
Whereas the 2015 United States Transgender Survey found that--

    (1) 47 percent of transgender people are sexually assaulted; and

    (2) among transgender people of color, 65 percent of Native Americans, 
59 percent of multiracial people, 58 percent of Middle Eastern people, and 
53 percent of African Americans are likely to have been sexually assaulted;

Whereas the 2010 Centers for Disease Control National Intimate Partner and 
        Sexual Violence Survey found that--

    (1) 44 percent of lesbians and 61 percent of bisexual women experience 
rape, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner, compared to 35 
percent of heterosexual women; and

    (2) 40 percent of gay men and 47 percent of bisexual men have 
experienced sexual violence other than rape, compared to 21 percent of 
heterosexual men;

Whereas the National Women's Law Center 2017 Let Her Learn Survey found that 38 
        percent of lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender teen girls reported 
        experiencing sexual violence compared to 21 percent of all girls;
Whereas data reveals that people with disabilities are at an increased risk of 
        being sexually assaulted;
Whereas according to End Rape on Campus, children with disabilities are 2.9 
        times more likely than children without disabilities to be sexually 
        abused;
Whereas according to the Vera Institute of Justice, 83 percent of women and 32 
        percent of men with cognitive disabilities reported being victims of 
        sexual assault;
Whereas women of all races and ethnicities face some risk of sexual assault, and 
        according to the 2010 Centers for Disease Control National Intimate 
        Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, 33 percent of multiracial non-
        Hispanic women, nearly 27 percent of indigenous women, 22 percent of 
        Black women, nearly 19 percent of White non-Hispanic women, more than 14 
        percent of Hispanic women, and 7 percent of Asian American and Pacific 
        Islander women in the United States have experienced rape;
Whereas according to a research report by the National Institute of Justice, 
        56.1 percent of American Indian and Alaska Native women have experienced 
        sexual violence;
Whereas sexual violence also affects adolescent girls, and according to the 
        National Women's Law Center 2017 Let Her Learn Survey, 1 in 5 girls aged 
        14 to 18 has been kissed or touched without consent, including 24 
        percent of Latina girls, 23 percent of Native American girls, and 22 
        percent of Black girls;
Whereas studies show that sexual violence is an underreported crime, indicating 
        that the rates of sexual violence may be even higher than these 
        estimates;
Whereas too many survivors from historically and currently disenfranchised and 
        underserved communities are ignored, blamed, and cast aside when seeking 
        support after experiencing a form of sexual violence;
Whereas, according to the Department of Justice, 31 percent of young women in 
        the juvenile justice system have been sexually abused;
Whereas youth of color, youth with disabilities, and youth who identify as 
        lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or gender non-conforming are 
        overrepresented in the child welfare system;
Whereas, according to the GLSEN 2016 report entitled ``From Teasing to Torment: 
        School Climate Revisited''--

    (1) 59.6 percent of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer 
(referred to in this preamble as ``LGBTQ'') secondary students have been 
sexually harassed at school and are more likely to experience sexual 
harassment than non-LGBTQ students; and

    (2) students with nontraditional gender expression are more likely to 
experience sexual harassment than students with traditional gender 
expression;

Whereas high-quality, medically accurate, and LGBTQ-affirming sex education is 
        critical in the effort to eliminate sexual violence by teaching young 
        people about sexual assault, harassment, and affirmative consent;
Whereas less than 40 percent of all high schools and only 14 percent of middle 
        schools in the United States teach all of the topics identified by the 
        Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as important sexual health 
        education topics;
Whereas, according to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network, there is an 
        increased likelihood that an individual will suffer from suicidal or 
        depressive thoughts after experiencing sexual violence;
Whereas, at a time of prioritized mass detention and deportation and the 
        rescinding of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program, it is 
        less safe for immigrants to report sexual violence;
Whereas a history of systemic inequality and discrimination as well as 
        incomplete solutions has resulted in a lack of resources to meet the 
        needs of diverse survivor populations;
Whereas according to the National Alliance to End Sexual Violence--

    (1) there is a lack of resources for sexual violence prevention for 
youth;

    (2) many rape crisis centers have waiting lists for prevention 
programs; and

    (3) more investment is needed in the Rape Prevention and Education 
Program;

Whereas April is National Sexual Assault Awareness Month;
Whereas sexual violence will only end if survivors of color, lesbian, gay, 
        bisexual and transgender survivors, survivors with disabilities, and 
        immigrant survivors are respected and supported;
Whereas current support systems mandated by Federal law for survivors of sexual 
        violence are neither comprehensive nor fully representative of the vast 
        and pervasive elements within rape culture; and
Whereas Congress is working to confront pervasive sexual violence in the 
        workplace, in schools, and in every area of life: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) affirms a commitment to elevate the voices, leadership, 
        and needs of historically and currently disenfranchised and 
        underserved communities in the effort to end sexual violence 
        and support all survivors of sexual violence, including 
        immigrant survivors, survivors with disabilities, survivors of 
        color, American Indian or Alaska Native survivors, survivors of 
        child sexual abuse, queer and intersex survivors, and lesbian, 
        gay, bisexual, and transgender survivors;
            (2) supports efforts to raise awareness of the history of 
        sexual violence prevention programs;
            (3) calls upon this Chamber to--
                    (A) give priority to the needs of survivors of 
                sexual violence and demonstrate proactive leadership in 
                the effort to end sexual violence; and
                    (B) reject rollbacks of protections against 
                harassment under--
                            (i) title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 
                        1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.), which prohibits 
                        discrimination in education programs based on 
                        race, color, or national origin;
                            (ii) title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 
                        1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.), which prohibits 
                        discrimination in employment based on race, 
                        color, national origin, sex (including sexual 
                        orientation and gender identity), or religion;
                            (iii) title IX of the Education Amendments 
                        of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.), which 
                        prohibits discrimination in education programs 
                        based on sex, including sexual orientation and 
                        gender identity;
                            (iv) titles I and II of the Americans with 
                        Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12111 et 
                        seq.), which prohibit discrimination based on 
                        disability in employment and public schools, 
                        respectively; and
                            (v) section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act 
                        of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794), which prohibits 
                        discrimination based on disability in education 
                        programs;
            (4) affirms that--
                    (A) title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 
                (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.), title II of the Americans 
                with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12131 et 
                seq.), section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 
                (29 U.S.C. 794), and title VI of the Civil Rights Act 
                of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.) intersect; and
                    (B) to address sexual violence in an educational 
                setting, these comprehensive civil rights laws must be 
                viewed as intersecting and pertaining to both sexual 
                violence and educational access;
            (5) affirms the pursuit of legislative solutions that--
                    (A) address the unique needs and experiences of 
                survivors of sexual violence from historically and 
                currently disenfranchised and underserved communities;
                    (B) allocate resources based on the needs and 
                vulnerability of diverse survivor populations; and
                    (C) allocate resources for disaggregated research 
                initiatives that shed light on the disproportionate 
                levels of sexual violence and the impact of sexual 
                violence on diverse survivor populations; and
            (6) calls upon the executive branch to faithfully and 
        robustly enforce laws that protect survivors of sexual violence 
        and communities at higher risk of sexual violence from 
        harassment, discrimination, and mistreatment.
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