Schakowsky Reintroduces the International Violence Against Women Act

Today, Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky, a Chief Deputy Whip and member of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, released the following statement after reintroducing H.R. 5034, the International Violence Against Women Act:

“Across the country and around the globe, women are standing up and saying: Enough! Enough to unfair and unequal treatment, enough to sexual harassment, enough to sexual assault and gender-based violence. The international community needs to make the eradication of violence against women a priority, and the United States needs to lead the charge. That’s why I’m so happy to announce that I have reintroduced H.R. 5034, the International Violence Against Women Act, known as IVAWA.

“If passed, IVAWA would ensure the permanent role of the Office of Global Women’s Issues in the State Department, and would guarantee we have a Gender-Based Violence Strategy that puts victims and survivors first. If passed, this bill would make the eradication of violence against women a central piece of the United States foreign policy agenda. IVAWA would ensure that gender-based violence prevention and response are included in all of our humanitarian efforts around the globe. It would update and enhance our country’s emergency response mechanisms for outbreaks of violence against women and girls abroad.

“Last fall, I worked with my Republican colleague Kristi Noem to pass the Women, Peace, and Security Act, through Congress. President Trump signed it into law on October 6^th. Like IVAWA, the Women, Peace, and Security Act takes major steps towards ensuring that our foreign policy is pro-woman and pro-girl. Its passage demonstrates that we don’t have to wait another minute to pass legislation that enshrines the equality and dignity of women. The time is now.”