[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 51 (Tuesday, May 3, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[Congressional Record: May 3, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
{time} 1730
NATIONAL RANDOM ACTS OF KINDNESS WEEK
Mrs. BYRNE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee
on Post Office and Civil Service be discharged from further
consideration of the joint resolution (H.J. Res. 357) designating the
week beginning February 12, 1995, as ``National Random Acts of Kindness
Week,'' and ask for its immediate consideration.
The Clerk read the title of the joint resolution.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Coppersmith). Is there objection to the
request of the gentlewoman from Virginia?
Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, reserving the right to object, under my
reservation I yield to the gentleman from California [Mr. Tucker] who
is the chief sponsor of House Joint Resolution 357.
Mr. TUCKER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding and I
thank the gentlewoman from Virginia [Mrs. Byrne] for bringing this
joint resolution to the floor.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to support this resolution designating the
week of February 12, 1995, as ``National Random Acts of Kindness
Week.'' Over the past several weeks, I have received dozens of cards,
letters, and phone calls from all over the country, expressing support
for this resolution. Members from both sides of the aisle have joined
in this effort, to express the sense of Congress, that all persons
should be encouraged to practice random acts of kindness, and at this
time I want to thank each and every one of them. We are all aware of
the increasing perception of unchecked violence engulfing our streets.
But how many of us, on our own motion Mr. Speaker, will pay the toll
for the guy behind us, carry the grocery bags for an elderly shopper,
say a kind word to a stranger, or give a quarter to a homeless person.
These, Mr. Speaker, are examples of the random acts of kindness Members
of this body should practice and encourage among people. Will this
resolution do anything to stop the violence? In all honesty Mr.
Speaker, I do not know. But I am comforted by knowing that random acts
of kindness are contagious.
God bless America.
Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, further reserving the right to object, I am
pleased to rise in support of House Joint Resolution 357, legislation
designating the week beginning February 12, 1995, as ``National Random
Acts of Kindness Week.'' I praise the gentleman from California [Mr.
Tucker] for introducing this resolution.
As Americans, we have become accustomed to horrifying crime
statistics--every day 14 Americans age 19 and under are killed in gun-
related suicides and homicides, about 1.2 million elementary-age
children have access to guns, and as many as 135,000 children bring
guns to school daily.
The rising incidence of violent crime in our cities and towns is a
statistic that we, as Americans, can no longer ignore.
While our criminal justice system must ensure that those who break
the law are appropriately punished, we, as fellow Americans, need to
get back to the basics and remember the inherent beauty that lies in
all of us. I believe that this may be done by practicing random acts of
kindness.
It is for this reason that I am proud to support this resolution. By
designating February 12, 1995, as a day in which we practice acts of
consideration and generosity, I believe that we can gain additional
strength and compassion, which, I am hopeful, will lead to peaceful
harmony and coexistence.
Mr. Speaker, I withdraw my reservation of objection.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentlewoman from Virginia?
There was no objection.
The Clerk read the joint resolution, as follows:
H.J. Res. 357
Whereas the incidence of random acts of violence in the
United States has reached epidemic levels;
Whereas the Surgeon General of the United States estimates
that, every day in the United States, 135,000 children carry
guns to school;
Whereas every day in the United States, 3 children are
killed by child abuse, 9 children are murdered, 13 children
are killed by guns, 30 children are wounded by guns, 307
children are arrested for crimes of violence, 7,945 children
are reported abused or neglected, and 5,703 teenagers are
victims of violent crime;
Whereas every 4 hours a child in the United States commits
suicide;
Whereas in the United States, a rape is committed every 6
minutes, and every year between 3,000,000 and 4,000,000 women
are battered by their partners and more than 200,000 women
are stalked;
Whereas every year in the United States, there are 4.7
random acts of violence committed against every 1,000 persons
65 years of age or older;
Whereas every year in the United States, there are 758.1
random acts of violence for every 100,000 persons in the
United States, and 235 firearm-related acts of violence for
every 100,000 persons in the United States;
Whereas there are 238,000,000 handguns in the United
States;
Whereas in 1992 in the United States, there were 1,730
anti-Semitic incidents, the total number of white-supremacist
groups rose 27 percent above the number from the previous
year, and a record number of bias-related incidents,
including 31 murders, were reported;
Whereas hate crimes against Asians comprised 8.9 percent of
all hate crimes documented in Los Angeles County in 1990;
every 4 hours an African-American child is murdered;
Whereas the United States strongly opposes random acts of
violence, and all forms of intolerance and mean-
spiritedness based on ethnicity, religion, race, gender,
or sexual orientation;
Whereas the people of the United States should be
encouraged to practice random acts of kindness, in the spirit
of compassion, kindness, and goodwill toward all persons; and
Whereas February 14 is annually celebrated as Valentine's
Day: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate of the House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the
week beginning February 12, 1995, is designated as ``National
Random Acts of Kindness Week,'' and the President is
authorized and requested to issue a proclamation calling on
the people of the United States to observe the week with
appropriate ceremonies and activities.
The joint resolution was ordered to be engrossed and read a third
time, was read the third time, and passed, and a motion to reconsider
was laid on the table.
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