[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 67 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 67

              Recognizing the International Day of Peace.


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                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 26, 2019

  Mr. Lewis submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was 
           referred to the Committee on Oversight and Reform

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                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
              Recognizing the International Day of Peace.

Whereas, on November 30, 1981, during the 77th plenary meeting, the United 
        Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution to declare the third 
        Tuesday of September as the International Day of Peace;
Whereas, nearly 20 years later, the United Nations General Assembly adopted A/
        RES/55/282, which officially designated September 21 as a global day to 
        recognize and celebrate international cease-fire and nonviolence;
Whereas, on September 21, all United Nations Member States, organizations, 
        regional and nongovernmental organizations, and individuals are 
        encouraged to celebrate and recognize global peace efforts;
Whereas the United States Institute of Peace coordinates an annual Peace Day 
        Challenge, an international effort to reaffirm peace as an authentic 
        alternative to violence and war;
Whereas according to the United States Institute of Peace, since 2015 the Peace 
        Day Challenge has reached more than 104 million people in 148 countries;
Whereas, in 2015, the USIP Global Peacebuilding Center developed an inaugural 
        USIPEACE Teachers program which selected educators to incorporate 
        peacebuilding into curricula and activities with students across the 
        country;
Whereas peace education programs help break the cycle of violence and conflict 
        by developing active communities committed to peace scholarship and 
        instruction;
Whereas the 2019 Global Peace Index found that peacefulness improved slightly 
        for the first time in five years, but declined in 76 countries of those 
        studied;
Whereas the 2019 Global Peace Index also noted that for the past 10 years there 
        has been a persistent decrease in the world's peacefulness and that 
        global violence cost $14.1 trillion in 2018;
Whereas these reports and actions underscore the importance of strengthening and 
        supporting domestic and global efforts to study, discuss, teach, and 
        develop techniques and methods to encourage and augment global peace 
        efforts;
Whereas climate change threatens world economies, public health, and the 
        environment, which affect the security and peaceful existence of global 
        citizens and countries around the world;
Whereas the Institute for Economics and Peace found that countries with lower 
        levels of positive peace have a higher ratio of fatalities as a result 
        of natural disasters;
Whereas climate change results in natural disasters, droughts, desalination of 
        water, destruction of ecosystems, and other catastrophes that exacerbate 
        or instigate tensions that lead to violent conflict;
Whereas young people and activists in more than 150 countries around the world 
        launched coordinated global protests demanding action on climate change 
        in September 2019; and
Whereas the theme for the 2019 International Day of Peace is ``Climate Action 
        for Peace'': Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That Congress--
            (1) recognizes the importance of celebrating the 38th 
        anniversary of the International Day of Peace; and
            (2) urges all citizens of the United States to reflect upon 
        the importance of peace, tolerance, cease-fire, and 
        nonviolence.
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