[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 59 (Thursday, April 4, 2019)]
[House]
[Page H3092]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     CELEBRATING REAUTHORIZATION OF THE VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT

  (Mr. SCHNEIDER asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. SCHNEIDER. Madam Speaker, I rise to celebrate the bipartisan 
reauthorization today of the Violence Against Women Act.
  In 2013, this legislation was one of the first votes I took as a new 
Member of Congress. This year, I was proud to be an original cosponsor 
of the bill to ensure survivors have access to essential services and 
justice.
  It is a sad fact that VAWA remains critically important. Despite some 
progress, the rate of domestic violence remains far too high.
  I recently acquired a painting created by a survivor of domestic 
violence. It is a beautiful scene of a woman standing in a field of 
sunflowers with a blue sky. But upon a closer look, you see the broken 
chains at her feet, chains representing her former prison of domestic 
abuse.
  While the woman in the painting was fortunately able to break free, 
so many others cannot. Today's legislation helps both groups.
  I am particularly glad that this year's bill makes improvements to 
help the victims of dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking, and 
increases resources available to vulnerable populations, including 
Native American women and the LGBTQ community.
  In our communities, there are many local organizations doing amazing 
work to help women escape situations of domestic violence and rebuild 
their lives, including A Safe Place in my district. I commend their 
work and the work of all groups like this across the Nation, and I hope 
this legislation will provide additional support and resources for 
their important mission.

                          ____________________