Full Text of HR1253 100th General Assembly
HR1253 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, It is of utmost importance that we honor those who | 3 | | have fought and served for the freedom of our nation; and
| 4 | | WHEREAS, Many veterans returning from service suffer from | 5 | | physical and psychological ailments, which makes finding and | 6 | | maintaining employment and consistent housing difficult; and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, Nearly 80% of homeless veterans suffer from mental | 8 | | health disorders, substance abuse, or co-occurring disorders, | 9 | | with Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) being one of the | 10 | | largest mental health challenges for returning veterans; and
| 11 | | WHEREAS, Since the American Revolution, over 2.5 million | 12 | | American women have served, or are serving, honorably in the | 13 | | United States Armed Forces; and
| 14 | | WHEREAS, Currently, of the over 22 million veterans in the | 15 | | United States, 2.2 million are women; of the over 495,000 | 16 | | unemployed veterans in the United States, approximately 23,000 | 17 | | are women; of the over 47,000 homeless veterans in the United | 18 | | States, over 4,000 are women; and
| 19 | | WHEREAS, From 2016 to 2017, the number of homeless female | 20 | | veterans increased by seven percent, compared to the one |
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| 1 | | percent increase of their male counterparts; women veterans are | 2 | | two to three times more likely to be homeless than any other | 3 | | group in the United States adult population; homeless female | 4 | | veterans are the fastest-growing demographic in the homeless | 5 | | community; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, One factor that contributes to this discrepancy is | 7 | | military sexual assault; the rate of violent sexual crimes | 8 | | within the military has increased by 64% since 2006; while | 9 | | women constitute only 14.6% of the military, they account for | 10 | | 95% of reported military sexual assault victims; and
| 11 | | WHEREAS, Female veterans who are victims of military sexual | 12 | | assault are nine times more likely to develop PTSD and 6.5 | 13 | | times more likely to experience homelessness; and
| 14 | | WHEREAS, Many victims of military sexual assault do not | 15 | | feel comfortable seeking help through the military resource of | 16 | | the Department of Veterans Affairs; an estimated 82% of women | 17 | | veterans do not use the Department of Veterans Affairs, leaving | 18 | | over 1.8 million women veterans without access to homeless | 19 | | prevention services; and
| 20 | | WHEREAS, Other factors in homelessness among female | 21 | | veterans include the lack of access to affordable childcare | 22 | | services, limited access to gender-specific services at |
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| 1 | | Veterans Affairs medical centers, and an increased risk for | 2 | | mental health disorders; and
| 3 | | WHEREAS, According to the United States Department of | 4 | | Veterans Affairs, over 55,000 women veterans reside in the | 5 | | state of Illinois; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, In Illinois, 13% of our veterans are homeless, | 7 | | including 1,100 women veterans across the state; therefore, be | 8 | | it
| 9 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | 10 | | HUNDREDTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that the | 11 | | number of homeless female veterans is a tragedy and disgrace | 12 | | for the women who have so honorably served and protected our | 13 | | nation; and be it further
| 14 | | RESOLVED, That we pay honor to and recognize our homeless | 15 | | female veterans by designating October 7, 2018 as Homeless | 16 | | Women Veterans Day in the State of Illinois; and be it further
| 17 | | RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be | 18 | | presented to the Department of Veterans Affairs, all members of | 19 | | the Illinois General Assembly, and the Governor of the State of | 20 | | Illinois.
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