African Descent Affairs Act of 2019

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 1877 To provide for the establishment of a global affairs strategy and assistance for people of African descent, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MARCH 26, 2019 Mr. HASTINGS (for himself, Mr. SERRANO, Ms. LEE of California, Mr. COHEN, Mr. LEWIS, Ms. MOORE, Mr. RUSH, and Mr. MEEKS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Af- fairs A BILL To provide for the establishment of a global affairs strategy and assistance for people of African descent, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘African Descent Af- 4 fairs Act of 2019’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress finds the following: 7 (1) The struggle to end discrimination against 8 people of African descent is a global challenge, and 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:47 Apr 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1877.IH H1877 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •HR 1877 IH one that is central to the United States commitment 1 to human rights. 2 (2) Targeted exclusion, violence, and discrimi- 3 nation against people of African descent continues 4 around the world. 5 (3) Issues range from the fight for ancestral 6 lands in Latin America, hate crimes resulting in in- 7 jury and death in Europe, to profiling and excessive 8 use of force by law enforcement in the United 9 States, and continuing global disparities in health, 10 education, employment, housing, and other sectors. 11 (4) It is imperative that the world actively ad- 12 dress the vestiges of slavery and colonialism that 13 have long hindered racial equality and justice and 14 prevented the recognition of the important contribu- 15 tions of people of African descent to the world. 16 (5) The International Decade for People of Af- 17 rican Descent, from January 1, 2015, to December 18 31, 2025, offers an opportunity to address these 19 issues domestically and globally through coordinated 20 government and civil society strategies, that include 21 the private sector. 22 SEC. 3. ACTIVITIES OF THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE. 23 (a) OFFICE OF GLOBAL AFRICAN DESCENT AF- 24 FAIRS.—Title I of the State Department Basic Authorities 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:47 Apr 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1877.IH H1877 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •HR 1877 IH Act of 1956 (22 U.S.C. 2651a et seq.) is amended by add- 1 ing at the end the following new section: 2 ‘‘SEC. 64. OFFICE OF GLOBAL AFRICAN DESCENT AFFAIRS. 3 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICE.—Not later than 4 60 days after the date of enactment of this section, the 5 Secretary of State shall establish within the Department 6 of State an Office of Global African Descent Affairs (in 7 this section referred to as the ‘Office’) in the Bureau of 8 Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs. 9 ‘‘(b) HEAD OF OFFICE.— 10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The head of the Office 11 shall be the Director and Special Advisor to the Sec- 12 retary on Global African Descent Affairs (in this 13 section referred to as the ‘Special Advisor’). 14 ‘‘(2) APPOINTMENT.—The Director shall be ap- 15 pointed by the Secretary. 16 ‘‘(c) OTHER PERSONNEL.—The Office shall be sup- 17 ported by two senior Foreign Service officers. 18 ‘‘(d) FUNCTIONS.—The functions of the Office shall 19 include the following: 20 ‘‘(1) Advise the Secretary and direct activities, 21 policies, programs, and funding relating to the 22 human rights and the advancement of people of Af- 23 rican descent internationally, for all bureaus and of- 24 fices of the Department of State and shall lead the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:47 Apr 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1877.IH H1877 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •HR 1877 IH coordination, monitoring, and evaluation of relevant 1 international programs for all other Federal agen- 2 cies. 3 ‘‘(2) Represent the United States in diplomatic 4 matters relevant to the human rights of people of 5 African descent in contacts with foreign govern- 6 ments, intergovernmental organizations, and special- 7 ized agencies of the United Nations, the Organiza- 8 tion for Security and Cooperation in Europe, other 9 international organizations of which the United 10 States is a member, and relevant multilateral con- 11 ferences and meetings. 12 ‘‘(3) Lead efforts to promote an international 13 focus on racial equality more broadly, including 14 through diplomatic initiatives with other countries 15 and partnerships and regular and enhanced coordi- 16 nation with international and nongovernmental orga- 17 nizations and the private sector. 18 ‘‘(4) Develop and manage the Fund for African 19 Descent Affairs, established under section 3(c) of 20 the African Descent Affairs Act of 2019, for the 21 purpose of investing in efficient and innovative solu- 22 tions to combat racial discrimination and create eco- 23 nomic and other opportunities for people of African 24 descent internationally. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:47 Apr 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1877.IH H1877 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •HR 1877 IH ‘‘(5) Develop a uniform set of indicators and 1 standards for monitoring and evaluating foreign pol- 2 icy assistance for people of African descent in Fed- 3 eral agencies. 4 ‘‘(6) Direct, as appropriate, United States Gov- 5 ernment resources to respond to needs for protec- 6 tion, integration, resettlement, and empowerment of 7 people of African descent in United States Govern- 8 ment policies and international programs, including 9 to prevent and respond to discrimination and vio- 10 lence against people of African descent internation- 11 ally. 12 ‘‘(7) Develop and coordinate United States Gov- 13 ernment international efforts related to the imple- 14 mentation of the International Decade for People of 15 African Descent and submit annual reports to Con- 16 gress on these efforts. 17 ‘‘(8) Work in collaboration with the Race, Eth- 18 nicity, and Social Inclusion Unit and the Bureau of 19 Western Hemisphere Affairs and consult with the 20 Bureau of African Affairs. 21 ‘‘(9) Compile an annual report on activities of 22 the United States Government relating to people of 23 African descent to fulfill the requirements of this 24 section and the African Descent Affairs Act of 2019. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:47 Apr 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1877.IH H1877 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •HR 1877 IH ‘‘(e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 1 ‘‘(1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT- 2 TEES.—The term ‘appropriate congressional com- 3 mittees’ means— 4 ‘‘(A) the Committee on Foreign Relations 5 and the Committee on Appropriations of the 6 Senate; 7 ‘‘(B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs 8 and the Committee on Appropriations of the 9 House of Representatives; and 10 ‘‘(C) the Commission on Security and Co- 11 operation in Europe. 12 ‘‘(2) PEOPLE OF AFRICAN DESCENT.—The 13 term ‘people of African descent’ has the meaning 14 given the term in section 5 of the African Descent 15 Affairs Act of 2019.’’. 16 (b) ANNUAL HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT.— 17 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Foreign Assistance Act 18 of 1961 is amended— 19 (A) in section 116 (22 U.S.C. 2151n), by 20 adding at the end the following new subsection: 21 ‘‘(h) STATUS OF PEOPLE OF AFRICAN DESCENT.— 22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The report required under 23 subsection (d) shall include, for countries in the 24 Americas, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, a de- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:47 Apr 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1877.IH H1877 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 •HR 1877 IH scription of the status of people of African descent 1 in each such country. 2 ‘‘(2) DEFINITION.—In this subsection, the term 3 ‘people of African descent’ has the meaning given 4 the term in section 5 of the African Descent Affairs 5 Act of 2019.’’; and 6 (B) in section 502B (22 U.S.C. 2304)— 7 (i) by redesignating the second sub- 8 section (i) (as added by section 1207(b)(2) 9 of Public Law 113–4) as subsection (j); 10 and 11 (ii) by adding at the end the following 12 new subsection: 13 ‘‘(k) STATUS OF PEOPLE OF AFRICAN DESCENT.— 14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The report required under 15 subsection (b) shall include, for countries in the 16 Americas, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, a de- 17 scription of the status of people of African descent 18 in each such country. 19 ‘‘(2) DEFINITION.—In this subsection, the term 20 ‘people of African descent’ has the meaning given 21 the term in section 5 of the African Descent Affairs 22 Act of 2019.’’. 23 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 24 by this subsection take effect on the date of the en- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:47 Apr 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1877.IH H1877 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 •HR 1877 IH actment of this Act and apply with respect to re- 1 ports required to be submitted under sections 116 2 and 502B of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as 3 amended by this subsection, on or after such date of 4 enactment. 5 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 6 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be 7 appropriated to the Secretary of State $5,000,000 8 for each of the fiscal years 2020 through 2029 to 9 carry out this section and the amendments made by 10 this section. 11 (2) PRIVATE CONTRIBUTIONS.—Notwith- 12 standing any other provision of law, the Secretary of 13 State is authorized to accept private contributions to 14 carry out this section and the amendments made by 15 this section. 16 (3) DESIGNATION.—Amounts appropriated pur- 17 suant to the authorization of appropriations under 18 paragraph (1) and private contributions accepted 19 under paragraph (2) may be referred to as the 20 ‘‘Fund for African Descent Affairs’’. 21 SEC. 4. ACTIVITIES OF THE UNITED STATES AGENCY FOR 22 INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT. 23 (a) SENIOR ADVISOR.— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:47 Apr 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1877.IH H1877 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 9 •HR 1877 IH (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the 1 United States Agency for International Development 2 shall appoint within the immediate office of the Ad- 3 ministrator a Senior Advisor to the Administrator on 4 Global African Descent Affairs (in this section re- 5 ferred to as the ‘‘Senior Advisor’’). 6 (2) APPOINTMENT.—The Senior Advisor shall 7 be appointed by the Administrator. 8 (b) FUNCTIONS.—The functions of the Senior Advi- 9 sor shall include the following: 10 (1) Advise the Administrator and direct activi- 11 ties, policies, programs, and funding relating to the 12 human rights and advancement of people of African 13 descent internationally for all bureaus and offices of 14 the Agency. 15 (2) Develop a racial and ethnic equality and 16 empowerment policy, strategy, and action plan for 17 the Agency, in consultation with civil society, that 18 includes a focus on people of African descent. 19 (3) Serve as the Agency liaison to the Depart- 20 ment of State’s Office of Global African Descent Af- 21 fairs. 22 (4) Develop a uniform set of indicators and 23 standards for monitoring and evaluating foreign as- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:47 Apr 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1877.IH H1877 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 10 •HR 1877 IH sistance for people of African descent in Federal 1 agencies. 2 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 3 authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator 4 $3,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2020 through 2029 5 to carry out this section. 6 SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS. 7 In this Act: 8 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT- 9 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com- 10 mittees’’ means— 11 (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations 12 and the Committee on Appropriations of the 13 Senate; 14 (B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and 15 the Committee on Appropriations of the House 16 of Representatives; and 17 (C) the Commission on Security and Co- 18 operation in Europe. 19 (2) PEOPLE OF AFRICAN DESCENT.—The term 20 ‘‘people of African descent’’ means persons of Afri- 21 can origin who are residents of countries of the 22 Americas, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:47 Apr 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1877.IH H1877 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 11 •HR 1877 IH SEC. 6. BRIEFINGS AND ASSESSMENTS. 1 Not later than 180 days after the date of the enact- 2 ment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Director 3 and Special Advisor to the Secretary on Global African 4 Descent Affairs (appointed under section 64 of the State 5 Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 (as added by 6 section 3 of this Act))— 7 (1) shall brief the appropriate congressional 8 committees on the status of the human rights, social 9 inclusion, equality, and empowerment of people of 10 African descent internationally, as well as the status 11 of programs and response strategies to address dis- 12 crimination and violence against people of African 13 descent internationally; and 14 (2) shall submit to the appropriate congres- 15 sional committees an assessment of human and fi- 16 nancial resources necessary to fulfill the purposes 17 and duties of this Act and the amendments made by 18 this Act. 19 SEC. 7. UNITED STATES POLICY TO PREVENT AND RE- 20 SPOND TO DISCRIMINATION AND VIOLENCE 21 AGAINST PEOPLE OF AFRICAN DESCENT. 22 (a) GLOBAL STRATEGY REQUIREMENT.—Not later 23 than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, 24 and annually thereafter for 10 years, the Director and 25 Special Advisor to the Secretary on Global African De- 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:47 Apr 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1877.IH H1877 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 12 •HR 1877 IH scent Affairs shall develop or update a United States glob- 1 al strategy to empower, prevent, and respond to discrimi- 2 nation and violence against people of African descent. The 3 strategy shall be transmitted to the appropriate congres- 4 sional committees and, if practicable, made available to 5 the public. 6 (b) COLLABORATION AND COORDINATION.—In devel- 7 oping the strategy under subsection (a), the Director and 8 Special Advisor to the Secretary on Global African De- 9 scent Affairs shall consult with— 10 (1) the heads of relevant Federal agencies; and 11 (2) representatives of civil society, multilateral, 12 and private sector organizations. 13 SEC. 8. SUNSET. 14 This Act and the amendments made by this Act shall 15 terminate on October 1, 20 [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]