Supporting the goals and ideals of the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Interphobia, and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT).

IV 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. RES. 418 Supporting the goals and ideals of the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Interphobia, and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT). IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MAY 17, 2023 Ms. LEE of California (for herself, Ms. BARRAGA´N, Ms. BONAMICI, Mr. CA´RDENAS, Mr. CLEAVER, Ms. DAVIDS of Kansas, Ms. LOIS FRANKEL of Florida, Ms. GARCIA of Texas, Mr. GREEN of Texas, Mr. HIGGINS of New York, Mr. HUFFMAN, Ms. JACOBS, Ms. KAMLAGER-DOVE, Mr. KHANNA, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. NADLER, Ms. OMAR, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. PHILLIPS, Ms. PINGREE, Mr. POCAN, Ms. PORTER, Ms. PRESSLEY, Mr. RASKIN, Ms. SA´NCHEZ, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. SCHIFF, Mr. SOTO, Ms. STRICKLAND, Mr. TAKANO, Ms. TITUS, Ms. TLAIB, Mr. TONKO, Mr. TORRES of New York, Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Ms. WILSON of Florida, and Ms. WILLIAMS of Georgia) submitted the fol- lowing resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Af- fairs, and in addition to the Committees on Energy and Commerce, and Education and the Workforce, 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 Supporting the goals and ideals of the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Interphobia, and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT). Whereas homophobia, biphobia, interphobia, and transphobia are deeply entrenched in societies across the world, in- cluding in the United States; VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:22 May 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR418.IH HR418 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 2 •HRES 418 IH Whereas over 11,000,000 American adults identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer (LGBTQ), and over 1,300,000 high school students identify as LGBTQ; Whereas, according to a 2018 study by the Williams Insti- tute— (1) 24 percent of female same-sex couples are rais- ing children; and (2) same-sex couples are 7 times more likely than different-sex couples to be raising an adopted or foster child; Whereas, according to a 2020 study by the Williams Insti- tute, 19 percent of transgender adults are raising chil- dren; Whereas the Center for American Progress found 1 in 3 LGBTQ people reported experiencing discrimination in some area of their lives because of their sexual orienta- tion or gender identity; Whereas 45 percent of United States employees report hear- ing anti-LGBTQ remarks in the workplace and 25 per- cent say that LGBTQ people are treated worse by law enforcement than non-LGBTQ people; Whereas, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, homophobia, transphobia, and biphobia con- tribute to disparities in physical and mental health indi- cators such as depression, substance use, cancer, and ex- periences of abuse and violence; Whereas the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention fur- ther report that homophobia, transphobia, and biphobia limit an individual’s ability to access high-quality health care and negatively affect such individual’s income and employment status; VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:22 May 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR418.IH HR418 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 3 •HRES 418 IH Whereas COVID–19 has further exacerbated the health dis- parities experienced by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex (LGBTQI) people; Whereas, according to the Global Commission on HIV and the Law, homophobia, transphobia, and biphobia con- tribute to disproportionately high rates of HIV among men who have sex with men and transgender women; Whereas, according to data from GLSEN, 83.1 percent LGBTQ+ students who attended school in-person at some point during the 2021-2022 academic year experi- enced in-person harassment or assault based on personal characteristics, including sexual orientation, gender ex- pression, gender, religion, actual or perceived race or eth- nicity, and actual or perceived disability; Whereas youth who are LGBTQ are 120 percent more likely to experience homelessness than their non-LGBTQ coun- terparts and are likely to lack access to health care and develop stress-related disorders; Whereas youth who identify as lesbian, gay, or bisexual are over 4 times more likely to attempt suicide compared to their heterosexual counterparts and transgender youth are over 5 times more likely to attempt suicide than their cisgender counterparts; Whereas homophobia, transphobia, interphobia, and biphobia are associated with minority stress that may underlie sex- ual behaviors that can increase the risk of HIV and AIDS transmission, and also create additional barriers for LGBTQI individuals to access prevention and treat- ment for HIV and AIDS; VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:22 May 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR418.IH HR418 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 4 •HRES 418 IH Whereas nearly one-half of all LGBTQ women report being physically or sexually assaulted since they were 18 years old; Whereas the 2015 U.S. Transgender Survey, a study of 27,715 transgender adults, found that 77 percent of those who were out or perceived as transgender in K–12 were harassed, physically or sexually assaulted, or faced other forms of mistreatment because of being transgender, and nearly 1 in 5 (17 percent) were forced to leave a school because of the severity of mistreatment that they faced; Whereas a 2021 Williams Institute study of national crime victimization data found that transgender people are over 4 times more likely than cisgender people to experience violence; Whereas the Center for American Progress found that— (1) 15 percent of LGBTQ individuals, including 28 percent of transgender individuals, reported postponing or avoiding needed medical care when they were sick or injured due to disrespect or discrimination by health pro- viders; (2) among LGBTQ people who reported experi- encing some form of discrimination in the year prior, 36 percent reported avoiding doctors’ offices to avoid dis- crimination compared with 20 percent of respondents overall; and (3) 18 percent of transgender people reported that a doctor or health provider refused to see them because of their actual or perceived gender identity; Whereas LGBTQ adults are over twice as likely to be unin- sured than their non-LGBTQ counterparts and LGBTQ VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:22 May 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR418.IH HR418 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 5 •HRES 418 IH adults, particularly bisexual men and women, are more likely to experience poverty; Whereas 67 countries have national laws that criminalize same-sex relations and at least 42 United Nations mem- ber states have legal barriers for freedom of expression on issues related to sexual and gender diversity, which is equal to roughly 35 percent of United Nations member states; Whereas 11 countries have jurisdictions in which the death penalty can be imposed for private, consensual, same-sex sexual activity; Whereas violence and discrimination based on sexual orienta- tion and gender identity are documented in the Depart- ment of State’s annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices; Whereas the report covering 2021 continues to show a clear pattern of human rights violations or abuses in every re- gion of the world based on sexual orientation, gender identity, or sex characteristics; Whereas these violations or abuses include murder, rape, tor- ture, death threats, extortion, and imprisonment, as well as loss of employment, housing, access to health care, and other forms of societal stigma and discrimination. The reports further document LGBTQI+-specific restric- tions on basic freedoms of assembly, press, and speech in every region of the world; Whereas, according to the World Health Organization, in some countries transgender women are 80 times more likely to have HIV, and there were 2,982 reported killings of transgender people in 72 countries between 2008 and 2018; VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:22 May 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR418.IH HR418 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 6 •HRES 418 IH Whereas, according to a Williams Institute study of 120 countries, greater social acceptance and legal rights for LGBTQ people are associated with stronger economic growth; and Whereas the European Parliament and other international bodies observe May 17 as International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Interphobia, and Transphobia: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 1 (1) supports the goals and ideals of an Inter- 2 national Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Inter- 3 phobia, and Transphobia; 4 (2) encourages the Federal Government, States, 5 localities, nonprofit organizations, schools, and com- 6 munity organizations to observe the day with appro- 7 priate programs and activities, with the goal of in- 8 creasing public knowledge of homophobia, 9 transphobia, biphobia, and interphobia and empow- 10 ering communities to celebrate and respect their di- 11 versity; 12 (3) encourages health care providers to offer 13 culturally and clinically competent care to the les- 14 bian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, 15 intersex, asexual, and agender (LGBTQIA+) com- 16 munity, schools to support the creation of gender 17 and sexuality alliances to achieve safer learning envi- 18 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:22 May 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HR418.IH HR418 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 7 •HRES 418 IH ronments, and individuals to learn about national re- 1 sources for those who identify as LGBTQIA+; and 2 (4) encourages the Federal Government, States, 3 international funding organizations, and United 4 States bilateral and multilateral aid efforts to 5 prioritize the health and human rights of 6 LGBTQIA+ people. 7 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:22 May 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\HR418.IH HR418 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB