District Of Columbia 2023-2024 Regular Session

District Of Columbia Council Bill CER25-0032 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1		-	ENROLLED ORIGINAL
2	1		1
3		-
4		-
5		-	A CEREMONIAL RESOLUTION
6		-
7		-
8		-	25-32
9		-
10		-
11		-	IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
12		-
13		-
14		-	March 7, 2023
15		-
16		-	To declare the month of April 2023 as “Sexual Assault Awareness Month” in the District of
17		-	Columbia, and to urge residents to show their support for victim-survivors and work to
18		-	prevent sexual assault, abuse, harassment , online harassment, and sex trafficking.
19		-
20		-	WHEREAS, in 1978, the first “Take Back the Night” events in the United States were held
21		-	in San Francisco and New York City;
22		-	WHEREAS, the movement that developed in the United States was created in the wake of
23		-	the civil rights movement, and was buoyed by B lack women’s activism to disrupt the persistent
24		-	and systemic sexual violence they experienced;
25		-	WHEREAS, the month of April has been designated as Sexual Assault Awareness Month
26		-	in the United States and was first observed nationally in April 2001, after the alarming statistics of
27		-	sexual assault and underreporting became more apparent;
28		-	WHEREAS, sexual assault awareness includes prevention and advocacy efforts to address
29		-	various forms of sexual violence, including child sexual abuse, sexual harassment, online sexual
30		-	harassment, sex trafficking, and rape;
31		-	WHEREAS, sexual assault awareness activities have expanded to include the issues of
32		-	sexual violence against men and men’s participation in ending sexual violence;
33		-
34		-	WHEREAS, sexual violence exists on a spectrum of behaviors, ranging from verbal
35		-	harassment to online harassment to sexual assault, and it is imperative to recognize that sexual harassment in the workplace is a pervasive, yet often overlooked, manifestation of sexual violence;
36		-	WHEREAS, according to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network, every 68 seconds,
37		-	someone in the United States is sexually assaulted;
38		-	WHEREAS, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, at least 1 in 7
39		-	children has experienced abuse or neglect in the last year;
40		-	ENROLLED ORIGINAL
41		-	2
42		-
43		-
44		-	WHEREAS, according to the National Center for Victims of Crimes, victim- survivors of
45		-	child sexual abuse have higher rates of being sexually assaulted again as adults, with children who
46		-	had an experience of rape or attempted rape in their adolescent years being 13.7 times more likely
47		-	to experience rape or attempted rape in their first year of college;
48		-
49		-	WHEREAS, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, among adult
50		-	women surveyed, 22% of Black, 26.9% of American Indian/Alaska Native, 22% of non- Hispanic
51		-	Black, 18.8% of non- Hispanic White, 14.6% of Hispanic, and 35.5% of women of multiple races
52		-	experienced an attempted or a completed rape at some time in their lives;
53		-
54		-	WHEREAS, according to the Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence, 23% of
55		-	Asian/Pacific Islander women experience some form of contact sexual violence;
56		-
57		-	WHEREAS, according to research published by the Georgetown Journal on Poverty Law
58		-	and Policy, married immigrant women experience higher levels of physical and sexual abuse than
59		-	unmarried immigrant women, at rates of 59.5% compared to 49.8%, respectively;
60		-
61		-	WHEREAS, according to the Department of Justice’s Office for Victims of Crime, 12%
62		-	of transgender youth report being sexually assaulted in K–12 settings by peers or educational staff,
63		-	13% of African-American transgender people surveyed were sexually assaulted in the workplace,
64		-	and 22% of homeless transgender individuals were assaulted while staying in shelters ;
65		-
66		-	WHEREAS, according to the National Sexual Violence Research Center , lesbian, gay,
67		-	bisexual, and queer people were three times more likely to report sexual violence or harassment
68		-	compared to heterosexual people;
69		-
70		-	WHEREAS, in deaf communities, reliance on interpreters may create challenges, as some
71		-	sexual assault survivors feel like their private experiences are not correctly represented and feel
72		-	uncomfortable reporting their assault to a stranger outside of their community;
73		-
74		-	WHEREAS, the rate of sexual assault against people with disabilities was three times that
75		-	of people without disabilities;
76		-
77		-	WHEREAS, according to the Administration for Children and Families, racial and ethnic
78		-	minorities, communities exposed to multigenerational trauma, individuals with a history of
79		-	substance abuse or leaving home, homeless youth, people with lived experience of poverty, and
80		-	children in the child welfare system , as well as those with a history of sexual abuse, are identified
81		-	as some of the groups most vulnerable to human trafficking;
82		-
83		-	WHEREAS, according to the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council’s Statistical Analysis
84		-	Center, Black girls in their teens and twenties in the District were the largest proportion of
85		-	trafficking victims in 2016; ENROLLED ORIGINAL
	2	+	______________________________ ______________________________ 1
	3	+	Councilmember Brooke Pinto Councilmember Charles Allen 2
86	4		3
87		-
88		-	WHEREAS, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s Task Force on the Study
89		-	of Harassment in the Workplace found that 45% of all workplace harassment complaints filed in
90		-	Fiscal Year 2015 were based on sex, and that sexual harassment victim-survivors experience
91		-	detrimental psychological and physical health effects;
92		-
93		-	WHEREAS, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, in 2021,
94		-	its CyberTipline received 29.3 million reports of suspected online child sexual exploitation, an
95		-	increase of 35% from 2020; and
96		-
97		-	WHEREAS, according to the 2021 District of Columbia Youth Risk Behavior Survey,
98		-	24.7% of District students who identify as LGBTQ and Questioning report being electronically
99		-	bullied.
100		-
101		-	RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, T hat this
102		-	resolution may be cited as the “Sexual Assault Awareness Month Recognition Resolution of
103		-	2023”.
104		-
105		-	Sec. 2. The Council of the District of Columbia declares the month of April 2023 as “Sexual
106		-	Assault Awareness Month” in the District of Columbia and urges residents to show their support
107		-	for victim- survivors and work to prevent sexual assault, abuse, harassment, online harassment, and
108		-	sex trafficking.
109		-
110		-	Sec. 3. This resolution shall take effect immediately.
	5	+	4
	6	+	5
	7	+	A CEREMONIAL RESOLUTION 6
	8	+	7
	9	+	_____ 8
	10	+	9
	11	+	10
	12	+	IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 11
	13	+	12
	14	+	__________ 13
	15	+	14
	16	+	15
	17	+	To declare the month of April 2023 as “Sexual Assault Awareness Month” in the District of 16
	18	+	Columbia, and to urge residents to show their support for victim-survivors and work to 17
	19	+	prevent sexual assault, abuse, harassment, online harassment, and sex trafficking. 18
	20	+	19
	21	+	WHEREAS, in 1978, the first “Take Back the Night” events in the United States were held 20
	22	+	in San Francisco and New York City; 21
	23	+	22
	24	+	WHEREAS, the movement that developed in the United States was created in the wake of 23
	25	+	the civil rights movement, and was buoyed by Black women’s activism to disrupt the persistent 24
	26	+	and systemic sexual violence they experienced; 25
	27	+	26
	28	+	WHEREAS, the month of April has been designated as Sexual Assault Awareness Month 27
	29	+	in the United States and was first observed nationally in April 2001, after the alarming statistics of 28
	30	+	sexual assault and underreporting became more apparent; 29
	31	+	30
	32	+	WHEREAS, sexual assault awareness includes prevention and advocacy efforts to address 31
	33	+	various forms of sexual violence, including child sexual abuse, sexual harassment, online sexual 32
	34	+	harassment, sex trafficking, and rape; 33
	35	+	34
	36	+	WHEREAS, sexual assault awareness activities have expanded to include the issues of 35
	37	+	sexual violence against men and men’s participation in ending sexual violence; 36
	38	+	37
	39	+	WHEREAS, sexual violence exists on a spectrum of behaviors, ranging from verbal 38
	40	+	harassment to online harassment to sexual assault, and it is imperative to recognize that sexual 39
	41	+	harassment in the workplace is a pervasive, yet often overlooked, manifestation of sexual violence; 40
	42	+	41
	43	+	WHEREAS, according to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network, every 68 seconds, 42
	44	+	someone in the United States is sexually assaulted; 43
	45	+	44
	46	+	WHEREAS, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, at least one in 45
	47	+	seven children has experienced abuse or neglect in the last year; 46 2
	48	+	WHEREAS, according to the National Center for Victims of Crimes, victim-survivors of 47
	49	+	child sexual abuse have higher rates of being sexually assaulted again as adults, with children who 48
	50	+	had an experience of rape or attempted rape in their adolescent years being 13.7 times more likely 49
	51	+	to experience rape or attempted rape in their first year of college; 50
	52	+	51
	53	+	WHEREAS, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, among adult 52
	54	+	women surveyed, 22% of Black, 26.9% of American Indian/Alaska Native, 22% of non-Hispanic 53
	55	+	Black, 18.8% of non-Hispanic White, 14.6% of Hispanic, and 35.5% of women of multiple races 54
	56	+	experienced an attempted or a completed rape at some time in their lives; 55
	57	+	56
	58	+	WHEREAS, according to the Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence, 23% of 57
	59	+	Asian/Pacific Islander women experience some form of contact sexual violence; 58
	60	+	59
	61	+	WHEREAS, according to research published by the Georgetown Journal on Poverty Law 60
	62	+	and Policy, married immigrant women experience higher levels of physical and sexual abuse than 61
	63	+	unmarried immigrant women, at rates of 59.5% compared to 49.8%, respectively; 62
	64	+	63
	65	+	WHEREAS, according to the Department of Justice’s Office for Victims of Crime, 12% 64
	66	+	of transgender youth report being sexually assaulted in K–12 settings by peers or educational staff, 65
	67	+	13% of African-American transgender people surveyed were sexually assaulted in the workplace, 66
	68	+	and 22% of homeless transgender individuals were assaulted while staying in shelters; 67
	69	+	68
	70	+	WHEREAS, according to the National Sexual Violence Research Center, lesbian, gay, 69
	71	+	bisexual, and queer people were three times more likely to report sexual violence or harassment 70
	72	+	compared to heterosexual people; 71
	73	+	72
	74	+	WHEREAS, in deaf communities, reliance on interpreters may create challenges, as some 73
	75	+	sexual assault survivors feel like their private experiences are not correctly represented and feel 74
	76	+	uncomfortable reporting their assault to a stranger outside of their community; 75
	77	+	76
	78	+	WHEREAS, the rate of sexual assault against people with disabilities was three times that 77
	79	+	of people without disabilities; 78
	80	+	79
	81	+	WHEREAS, according to the Administration for Children and Families, racial and ethnic 80
	82	+	minorities, communities exposed to multigenerational trauma, individuals with a history of 81
	83	+	substance abuse or leaving home, homeless youth, people with lived experience of poverty, and 82
	84	+	children in the child welfare system, as well as those with a history of sexual abuse, are identified 83
	85	+	as some of the groups most vulnerable to human trafficking; 84
	86	+	85
	87	+	WHEREAS, according to the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council’s Statistical Analysis 86
	88	+	Center, Black girls in their teens and twenties in the District were the largest proportion of 87
	89	+	trafficking victims in 2016; 88
	90	+	89
	91	+	WHEREAS, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s Task Force on the Study 90
	92	+	of Harassment in the Workplace found that 45% of all workplace harassment complaints filed in 91 3
	93	+	Fiscal Year 2015 were based on sex, and that sexual harassment victim-survivors experience 92
	94	+	detrimental psychological and physical health effects. 93
	95	+	94
	96	+	WHEREAS, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, in 2021, 95
	97	+	its CyberTipline received 29.3 million reports of suspected online child sexual exploitation, an 96
	98	+	increase of 35% from 2020; and 97
	99	+	98
	100	+	WHEREAS, according to the 2021 District of Columbia Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 99
	101	+	24.7% of District students who identify as LGBTQ and Questioning report being electronically 100
	102	+	bullied. 101
	103	+	102
	104	+	RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this 103
	105	+	resolution may be cited as the “Sexual Assault Awareness Month Recognition Resolution of 104
	106	+	2023”. 105
	107	+	106
	108	+	Sec. 2. The Council of the District of Columbia declares the month of April 2023 as “Sexual 107
	109	+	Assault Awareness Month” in the District of Columbia and urges residents to show their support 108
	110	+	for victim-survivors and work to prevent sexual assault, abuse, harassment, online harassment, and 109
	111	+	sex trafficking. 110
	112	+	111
	113	+	Sec. 3. This resolution shall take effect immediately. 112