Reaffirming the importance of the United States to promote the safety, health, and well-being of refugees and displaced persons.

IV 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. RES. 490 Reaffirming the importance of the United States to promote the safety, health, and well-being of refugees and displaced persons. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JUNE 22, 2021 Mr. LIEU (for himself, Ms. LOFGREN, Mr. NEGUSE, Ms. OMAR, Ms. GARCIA of Texas, Mr. DEUTCH, Ms. BASS, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. SMITH of Wash- ington, Mr. MCGOVERN, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. COHEN, Mr. SCHNEI- DER, Ms. PRESSLEY, Mr. SHERMAN, Mr. CICILLINE, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Ms. BONAMICI, Ms. LEE of California, Mr. RASKIN, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin, Ms. TITUS, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. RUSH, Mr. CONNOLLY, Mr. VARGAS, Mr. FOSTER, Mr. KHANNA, Mr. GARCI´A of Illinois, Mr. HIGGINS of New York, Mr. DESAULNIER, Mr. POCAN, Ms. JACOBS of California, Mr. NADLER, Mr. JOHNSON of Geor- gia, Mrs. TORRES of California, Ms. JAYAPAL, Ms. SPEIER, Mr. SIRES, Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York, Mr. MCNERNEY, Mr. WELCH, Ms. DELBENE, Mr. AUCHINCLOSS, Ms. MATSUI, Mr. BERA, Ms. SA´NCHEZ, Mr. BOWMAN, Ms. NORTON, Mr. JONES, Mrs. LAWRENCE, Mr. KILMER, and Mr. KIND) 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 Reaffirming the importance of the United States to promote the safety, health, and well-being of refugees and dis- placed persons. Whereas June 20 is observed as ‘‘World Refugee Day’’, a global event to acknowledge the courage, resilience, and VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:57 Jun 23, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR490.IH HR490 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HRES 490 IH determination of individuals and families who are forced to flee their homes due to persecution; Whereas December 2020 signified 70 years since the found- ing of the Office of the United Nations High Commis- sioner for Refugees (UNHCR); Whereas July 28, 2021, is the 70th anniversary of the Con- vention Relating to the Status of Refugees, held in Gene- va on July 28, 1951, which defines the term ‘‘refugee’’ and outlines the rights of refugees and the legal obliga- tions of states to protect them; Whereas, in 2020, according to the UNHCR— (1) there were more than 82,400,000 forcibly dis- placed people worldwide, the worst displacement crisis in recorded history, including 26,400,000 refugees, more than 48,000,000 internally displaced people, and 4,100,000 people seeking asylum; (2) on average, 1 out of every 95 people worldwide was a refugee, an internally displaced person, or a person seeking asylum; (3) 11,200,000 people were newly displaced due to recent conflict or persecution; (4) 68 percent of the world’s refugees came from Syria, Venezuela, Afghanistan, South Sudan, and Burma; (5) 2,600,000 Afghan refugees are currently dis- placed worldwide, making them one of the world’s largest and longest-running displaced populations; (6) more than 50 percent of the population of Syria, at least 13,500,000 people, were displaced, either across the international border or within Syria, which represents the largest displacement crisis in the world today; (7) children accounted for 30 percent of the world’s population but 42 percent of all forcibly displaced people, VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:57 Jun 23, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR490.IH HR490 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HRES 490 IH millions of whom were unable to access basic services, in- cluding education; and (8) 86 percent of all refugees were hosted by devel- oping nations, and less than 1 percent of vulnerable refu- gees in need of resettlement had the opportunity to reset- tle because sufficient numbers of places do not exist; Whereas refugees are major contributors to local economies and served as critical frontline health professionals and essential workers combating the COVID–19 pandemic worldwide; Whereas the United States has an obligation to provide hu- manitarian protection to refugees, as well as interpreters, translators, and others in Afghanistan who served along- side United States and NATO troops, diplomats, and de- velopment workers; Whereas the United States supports the UNHCR to increase protection for LGBTQI+ refugees overseas and to sup- port global resettlement of LGBTQI+ refugees; and Whereas the United States resettlement program, which was established over 40 years ago, is a lifesaving solution cru- cial to global humanitarian efforts, strengthens global se- curity, advances United States foreign policy goals, sup- ports regional host countries, and assists individuals and families in need: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 1 (1) reaffirms the bipartisan commitment of the 2 United States to promote the safety, health, and 3 well-being of millions of refugees, including the edu- 4 cation of refugee children and displaced persons who 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:57 Jun 23, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HR490.IH HR490 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HRES 490 IH flee war, persecution, or torture in search of peace, 1 hope, and freedom; 2 (2) recognizes those individuals who have risked 3 their lives working, either individually or for non- 4 governmental organizations and international agen- 5 cies, such as the United Nations High Commissioner 6 for Refugees, to provide lifesaving assistance and 7 protection for people displaced around the world; 8 (3) underscores the importance of the United 9 States refugee resettlement program as a critical 10 tool for the United States Government to strengthen 11 national and regional security and encourage inter- 12 national solidarity with host countries; 13 (4) calls upon the Secretary of State and 14 United States Ambassador to the United Nations 15 to— 16 (A) continue providing robust funding for 17 refugee protection overseas and resettlement in 18 the United States; 19 (B) uphold the United States international 20 leadership role in responding to displacement 21 crises with humanitarian assistance, and restore 22 its leadership role in the protection of vulner- 23 able refugee populations that endure sexual vio- 24 lence, human trafficking, persecution and vio- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:57 Jun 23, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HR490.IH HR490 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HRES 490 IH lence against religious minorities, forced con- 1 scription, genocide, and exploitation; 2 (C) work in partnership with the inter- 3 national community to find solutions to existing 4 conflicts and prevent new conflicts from begin- 5 ning; 6 (D) continue supporting the efforts of the 7 United Nations High Commissioner for Refu- 8 gees and to advance the work of nongovern- 9 mental organizations to protect refugees regard- 10 less of their country of origin or religious be- 11 liefs; 12 (E) continue to alleviate pressures on 13 frontline refugee host countries that absorb the 14 majority of the world’s refugees through hu- 15 manitarian and development support; and 16 (F) respond to the global refugee crisis by 17 meeting robust refugee admissions goals; and 18 (5) reaffirms the goals of ‘‘World Refugee Day’’ 19 and reiterates the strong commitment to protect the 20 millions of refugees who live without material, social, 21 or legal protections. 22 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:57 Jun 23, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\HR490.IH HR490 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS