Addressing Racial Injustice
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Addressing Racial Injustice The United States has a dark, painful history of racial injustice dating back 400 years to when the first African slave arrived on our shores. Once slavery was banned, discriminatory policies such as Jim Crow laws, redlining, and segregation persisted in many areas of our nation. While those policies have rightfully been relegated to history, racial inequality continues to persist in America. To this day, Black Americans continue to face glaring disparities in access to health care, good schools, a clean environment, a fair workplace, affordable housing, and a fair criminal justice system. As a community, a Commonwealth, and a nation, we cannot afford to ignore the consequences, some of which are fatal, of this inequality on communities of color. Congresswoman Trahan is working to ensure that the nationwide movement to end racial injustice translates to action at the federal level and permeates all of our policy discussions and legislative agenda that will create a more equal and more just America. Strength in Diversity Act Congresswoman Trahan is a cosponsor of the Strength in Diversity Act. This bill directs the Department of Education to award grants to specified educational agencies in order to develop or implement plans to improve diversity and eliminate racial or socioeconomic isolation in publicly funded early childhood education programs, public elementary schools, or public secondary schools. Black History is American History Act Congresswoman Trahan is a cosponsor of the Black History is American History Act, which would add Black history as a required component of the American History and Civics Academies’ competitive grant programs, which are administered by the U.S. Department of Education. Resolution for 2020 Observance of Juneteenth Independence Congresswoman Trahan is a cosponsor of a Resolution for 2020 Observation of Juneteenth Independence. This resolution recognizes Juneteenth (June 19th) as a national holiday. The holiday would recognize the day in 1865 when Union Army Major General Gordon Granger informed slaves in Galveston, Texas that they were free - two years after President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. Justice in Policing Act of 2020 The recurrence of police brutality and the use of excessive force is a life-threatening issue that has gone unaddressed for far too long. Recent killings of Black men, women, and children at the hands of law enforcement have ignited nationwide protests as Americans demand change. Congresswoman Trahan is proud to be an original cosponsor of the Justice in Policing Act of 2020. This landmark legislation, which passed in the U.S. House of Representatives with bipartisan support on June 25, 2020, was developed under the leadership of the Congressional Black Caucus. The bill addresses a wide range of policies and issues regarding policing practices and law enforcement accountability. Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans Act Congresswoman Trahan is a cosponsor of the Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans Act, legislation that would authorize the creation of a Federal Commission to study slavery, its consequences, and develop appropriate remedies for Congress to consider and enact. Renaming Military Bases The House Armed Services Committee argued its way through its version of the fiscal 2021 defense policy bill on July 1, 2020, ultimately approving the annual legislation 56-0. In this legislation was a key amendment renaming Confederate- named bases within one year of the legislation passing. As we grapple with our nation’s painful history, we must acknowledge the history of the confederacy is centered on slavery. These changes are long overdue, but will dictate the culture of our US military. Law Enforcement Training for Mental Health Crisis Response Act Congresswoman Trahan is a cosponsor of the Law Enforcement Training for Mental Health Crisis Response Act, a bill that provides grants to state and local law enforcement agencies to obtain behavioral health crisis response training for their officers. The bill would also provide funding for law enforcement training to ensure that officers are better equipped to recognize, deescalate, and respond to individuals experiencing mental health crises.
Congresswoman Trahan and her daughters protesting against racial injustice in their hometown of Westford, MA.
The Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation (TRHT) Resolution Congresswoman Trahan is a proud cosponsor of the Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation Resolution. This resolution looks to change the way Americans think about issues of racism by dismantling a hierarchy of human value based on superficial physical characteristics, such as skin color and facial features. Specifically, this resolution proposes a U.S. Commission on Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation to properly acknowledge, memorialize, and catalyze progress. Andrew Kearse Accountability for Denial of Medical Care Act Congresswoman Trahan is a cosponsor of the Andrew Kearse Accountability for Denial of Medical Care Act. This bill holds federal law enforcement officials liable when they fail to obtain or provide medical care to individuals in their custody who are experiencing medical distress. It also requires training for federal law enforcement officials on assisting individuals in medical distress and directs the Inspector General of agencies that employ federal law enforcement officers to investigate and refer potential violations to the Department of Justice for prosecution. Additional Supported Legislation Resolution Condemning Police Brutality Condemning White Supremacist Terrorism and the Anti-immigrant Rhetoric that Inspires It Amendment to the Constitution of the United States providing that the rights extended by the Constitution are the rights of natural persons only* * indicates the Congresswoman is an Original Cosponsor of that legislation. 
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