[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 80 (Wednesday, April 26, 2023)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 25265-25266]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-08937]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 88 , No. 80 / Wednesday, April 26, 2023 / 
Presidential Documents  

[[Page 25265]]


                Proclamation 10555 of April 21, 2023

                
National Crime Victims' Rights Week, 2023

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                Every person deserves to feel safe in their home, 
                school, workplace, and community. Yet each year, 
                millions of Americans fall victim to acts of violence, 
                theft, fraud, and other crimes. Often, the pain and 
                trauma can have long-term impacts. During National 
                Crime Victims' Rights Week, we recommit to the work of 
                preventing crime, supporting victims as they heal, and 
                holding offenders accountable.

                Beyond the physical, psychological, and emotional 
                scars, victims and their families too often bear the 
                economic burden of the crimes they suffered--such as 
                lost income, medical bills, or expenses for temporary 
                housing. As a United States Senator, I was proud to 
                support the Victims of Crime Act in 1984, which created 
                a Crime Victims Fund using fines from Federal 
                prosecutions to directly compensate victims and finance 
                victim assistance services. In recent years, the fund's 
                balance declined significantly, so I signed a bill in 
                2021 to rebuild it and ensure that victims can access 
                these critical resources.

                Last year, I also reauthorized and strengthened the 
                Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), which I first wrote 
                as a United States Senator more than 30 years ago to 
                change the laws and culture around the scourge of 
                domestic and sexual violence in America. For decades, 
                this law has supported shelters and rape crisis 
                centers; funded housing and legal assistance for 
                survivors of abusive relationships, sexual assault, and 
                stalking; and helped train law enforcement agencies and 
                courts to make the justice system more responsive to 
                survivors' needs.

                As President, I increased funding for VAWA to its 
                highest level so that we can hold more offenders 
                accountable and allow more victims to access trauma-
                informed care--especially victims from underserved 
                communities, including those from the LGBTQI+ community 
                and rural areas. Tribal courts will now be able to 
                exercise jurisdiction over non-Native perpetrators of 
                sexual assault, child abuse, and sex trafficking. The 
                law also enables victims to take people who disseminate 
                their intimate images without consent to court, and it 
                provides training for law enforcement, prosecutors, and 
                victim service providers in addressing online abuse and 
                cyberstalking.

                I signed into law the COVID-19 Hate Crimes and Khalid 
                Jabara-Heather Heyer NO HATE Acts, which help State, 
                local, and Tribal law enforcement agencies better track 
                and prosecute hate-fueled acts of violence against 
                people from marginalized groups, including by 
                establishing state-run reporting hotlines for victims 
                of hate crimes. We also made lynching a Federal hate 
                crime for the first time in American history with the 
                Emmett Till Antilynching Act, giving prosecutors more 
                power to pursue perpetrators of these vile acts. I also 
                hosted the United We Stand Summit, convening civic, 
                faith, philanthropic, and business leaders to prevent 
                and respond to hate crimes, and to help survivors of 
                hate crimes and their communities heal from these 
                tragic events.

                While my Administration continues to take historic 
                action to reduce gun crime, we are also taking action 
                to help survivors of gun violence and families that 
                have lost loved ones to this public health epidemic. 
                Last

[[Page 25266]]

                June, I was proud to sign the Bipartisan Safer 
                Communities Act, the most sweeping gun safety law in 
                nearly three decades. Among other steps, this law helps 
                keep guns out of the hands of dating partners convicted 
                of violent crimes and provides over a billion dollars 
                to address the youth mental health crisis in America, 
                especially trauma experienced by survivors of gun 
                violence. In March 2023, I signed an Executive Order 
                directing key members of my Cabinet to submit a 
                proposal for improving Federal support for communities 
                and individuals impacted by gun violence.

                Supporting crime victims also requires building trust 
                between the public and law enforcement. When someone 
                falls victim to a crime, first responders should have 
                the resources they need to ensure victims feel heard, 
                valued, and supported. We have provided States with 
                over $10 billion to improve law enforcement training, 
                fund community violence interventions, purchase 
                necessary equipment like body-worn cameras, clear court 
                backlogs, and support crime victims. My Safer America 
                Plan calls for an additional $37 billion to prevent 
                crime, reduce gun violence, and create a fairer justice 
                system--including by hiring 100,000 more officers for 
                safe, effective, and accountable community policing, 
                consistent with the standards of my policing Executive 
                Order, which will also help strengthen public trust in 
                law enforcement.

                This week and every week, let us all commit to doing 
                our part to help prevent crimes and to provide 
                survivors with the resources they need to heal, pursue 
                justice, and emerge stronger. If you or a loved one are 
                a victim of crime, I encourage you to visit 
                www.Crimevictims.gov.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of 
                the United States of America, by virtue of the 
                authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws 
                of the United States, do hereby proclaim April 23 
                through April 29, 2023, as National Crime Victims' 
                Rights Week. I call upon all Americans to observe this 
                week by participating in events that raise awareness of 
                victims' rights and services and by volunteering to 
                serve and support victims in their time of need.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                twenty-first day of April, in the year of our Lord two 
                thousand twenty-three, and of the Independence of the 
                United States of America the two hundred and forty-
                seventh.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2023-08937
Filed 4-25-23; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3395-F3-P