[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 470 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 470

 Supporting the right of LGBTQI+ people to equal and inalienable human 
rights, economic rights, civil rights, and social and political equity 
  at home and abroad and condemning discrimination, persecution, and 
   violence against LGBTQI+ identifying individuals and communities 
              everywhere, including in Europe and Eurasia.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 11, 2021

  Mr. Keating (for himself, Mr. Cicilline, Mr. Deutch, Ms. Jacobs of 
 California, Mr. Malinowski, Ms. Titus, Mr. Castro of Texas, Ms. Wild, 
  Mr. McGovern, Mr. Costa, Mr. Takano, and Mr. Pappas) submitted the 
 following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign 
   Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a 
 period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 
                          committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Supporting the right of LGBTQI+ people to equal and inalienable human 
rights, economic rights, civil rights, and social and political equity 
  at home and abroad and condemning discrimination, persecution, and 
   violence against LGBTQI+ identifying individuals and communities 
              everywhere, including in Europe and Eurasia.

Whereas Articles 2 and 7 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights state that 
        all people are entitled to the rights and freedoms in the Declaration 
        without distinction of any kind such as race, color, sex, language, 
        religion, political opinion or other opinion, national or social origin, 
        property, birth, or other status, and Articles 2, 14, and 26 of the 
        International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights reinforce this 
        right to equality for all with no distinction;
Whereas Articles 19 and 20 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and 
        Articles 2, 14, and 26 of the International Covenant on Civil and 
        Political Rights ensure freedom of expression and freedom of association 
        for all individuals;
Whereas globally, including in some countries in Europe and Eurasia, lesbian, 
        gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex (referred to in this 
        resolution as ``LGBTQI+'') communities have faced increasingly hostile 
        environments, fueled by increasing democratic backsliding and 
        discriminatory rhetoric by politicians across the region;
Whereas some European countries are considered to have among the world's 
        strongest rights and protections for LGBTQI+ persons, and a number of 
        other countries in Europe and Eurasia have made progress in expanding 
        rights and protections for LGBTQI+ persons, despite continuing 
        challenges in the region;
Whereas the right to equal treatment and nondiscrimination is enshrined in the 
        Charter of the Fundamental Rights of the European Union, the Treaty on 
        European Union, and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union;
Whereas the 47 member states of the Council of Europe agreed in 2010 to a 
        Recommendation from its Committee of Ministers on measures to combat 
        discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity;
Whereas some countries in Europe and Eurasia do not explicitly include sexual 
        orientation, sex characteristics, or gender identity and expression as 
        protected grounds in antidiscrimination laws, and as a result place 
        marginalized populations in danger of discrimination and violence;
Whereas in many countries in Europe and Eurasia LGBTQI+ communities that already 
        face marginalization have experienced increased levels of homelessness 
        and economic insecurity during the COVID-19 pandemic;
Whereas hate speech and online and physical abuse against LGBTQI+ communities in 
        Europe and Eurasia have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic;
Whereas European and multinational organizations lack systematic monitoring, 
        documentation, and data collection surrounding hate crimes against 
        LGBTQI+ identifying individuals and concerning violence against LGBTQI+ 
        communities;
Whereas many governments at either the national or regional level, including in 
        Turkey, Poland, and Hungary municipal governments, have taken actions 
        that curtail the rights of or negatively target LGBTQI+ people;
Whereas Polish local governments in the form of regional, county, or municipal 
        governing bodies have passed resolutions declaring themselves to be 
        ``LGBT-Free Zones'' or ``free from LGBT Ideology'';
Whereas expressions of bigotry and hostility by authorities may result in 
        increased acts of violence and hate crimes against LGBTQI+ individuals;
Whereas LGBTQI+ people have faced increasing violence from which authorities 
        have not protected them, including violence against participants in 
        pride parades;
Whereas, in many countries, antitrans rhetoric has been linked to an increase in 
        transphobic hate crimes over the past several years, including multiple 
        murders of transgender individuals in Europe and Eurasia in recent 
        years;
Whereas opposition to trans rights has grown in much of Europe and Eurasia, in 
        some cases causing a regression in legal gender recognition policies;
Whereas legal gender recognition has stagnated or reversed, with some countries 
        withdrawing or restricting the right to legal gender recognition in law, 
        including to various degrees in Hungary, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan;
Whereas in some instances authorities across Europe and Eurasia have failed to 
        classify hate crimes committed against LGBTQI+ individuals as such, 
        including murder, other acts of violence, and extortion;
Whereas government officials in Hungary and Poland have used anti-LGBTQI+ 
        rhetoric in the political sphere, which civil society groups have linked 
        to an increase in violence against LGBTQI+ identifying people, as well 
        as introduced legislative actions that have limited the rights of 
        LGBTQI+ people;
Whereas Russian President Vladimir Putin has stated that he will not introduce 
        marriage equality in the Russian Federation as long as he remains in 
        power;
Whereas Russian authorities have imposed fines on Russian citizens, prohibited 
        rallies and performances, and blocked websites on the basis of a 2013 
        law banning ``propaganda'' to minors about ``non-traditional sexual 
        relationships'';
Whereas in the Chechen Republic of the Russian Federation, authorities in 2017 
        and again in the winter of 2018-2019 detained and tortured gay men in a 
        campaign of arrests, torture, and extrajudicial executions in what has 
        since become known as the ``gay purge'';
Whereas, in February of 2020, journalist Elena Milashina, who first reported on 
        the ``gay purge'' in Chechnya, was attacked by what appeared to be an 
        organized mob in the Chechen capital of Grozny and was later the target 
        of a death threat delivered on Instagram by Ramzan Kadyrov, the leader 
        of the Chechen Republic;
Whereas the United States and European Union have sanctioned two Russian 
        officials in Chechnya for their role in the persecution of LGBTQI+ 
        identifying people in the region;
Whereas the severity of these attacks prompted the United States and 15 other 
        countries to support the appointment of an Organization for Security and 
        Co-operation in Europe rapporteur in 2018 to examine gross violations of 
        human rights, torture, extrajudicial killings, forced disappearances, 
        and impunity;
Whereas, despite significant difficulties, many governments in European and 
        Eurasian countries have made positive progress toward LGBTQI+ equality 
        and human rights in recent years;
Whereas many countries in Europe and Eurasia allow same-sex marriage and same-
        sex civil unions, including Montenegro which in 2020 became the first 
        Western Balkan country to legalize same-sex civil partnership;
Whereas, in 2020, a court in Turkey reversed a previous ban on pride parades in 
        the country;
Whereas, on March 11, 2021, the European Parliament passed a resolution 
        declaring an ``LGBTIQ Freedom Zone'' in response to concerning 
        developments related to the human rights situation for LGBTQI+ 
        communities in the European Union; and
Whereas the United States and its transatlantic allies and partners must explore 
        avenues for cooperation in support of the human rights, civil rights, 
        social rights, and economic rights of LGBTQI+ identifying people and in 
        building coalitions in support of equality in the United States, Europe, 
        Eurasia, and across the world: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) reinforces that the United States Government has an 
        obligation to promote and protect the human rights of all 
        people, a central value of our country, including those of 
        LGBTQI+ identifying individuals at home and abroad;
            (2) finds that it is the responsibility of all governments 
        to ensure that the equal rights of LGBTQI+ people are 
        respected;
            (3) calls on the Department of State, the United States 
        Agency for International Development, and other Federal 
        agencies to include the promotion of equal rights for LGBTQI+ 
        identifying people in their work;
            (4) strongly condemns all acts of discrimination, 
        persecution, and violence, including bigoted rhetoric and hate 
        crimes, committed against any person based on their sexual 
        orientation, gender identity, gender expression, or sex 
        characteristics;
            (5) calls on governments across Europe and Eurasia to 
        foster safe and equitable environments for all people, 
        including those within the LGBTQI+ community;
            (6) recognizes the progress that many countries across 
        Europe and Eurasia have achieved in ensuring equal rights for 
        LGBTQI+ identifying individuals and communities;
            (7) calls on any governments with such a policy to rescind 
        all designation of counties, regions, or municipalities as 
        ``LGBT-Free Zones'' and quickly implement measures to 
        reintroduce equitable local practices and root out systematized 
        discrimination in governing practices;
            (8) urges the United States Government to continue to 
        assist in the development and implementation of training 
        programs in European and Eurasian countries, and within 
        multilateral bodies, to bolster antidiscrimination practices 
        and promote LGBTQI+ equity and inclusion;
            (9) urges the United States Government to increase funding 
        for LGBTQI+ human rights organizations in Europe and Eurasia so 
        that they are better equipped to respond to growing anti-
        LGBTQI+ forces;
            (10) expresses concern that young LGBTQI+ individuals 
        experience harassment beginning in school, and calls for 
        European and Eurasian governments to take action and provide 
        LGBTQI+ children the same rights to equality in the educational 
        system as all students;
            (11) calls for better and more comprehensive reporting of 
        anti-LGBTQI+ hate crimes in Europe and Eurasia and for 
        transatlantic cooperation on data collection and reporting 
        systems for anti-LGBTQI+ hate crimes and bias-motivated 
        violence in Europe, Eurasia, and the United States;
            (12) continues to support the fundamental human rights, 
        civil rights, social rights, and economic rights of all LGBTQI+ 
        identifying people on both sides of the Atlantic; and
            (13) encourages further protection for LGBTQI+ and other 
        marginalized communities around the world.
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