BILL NUMBER: ACR 149	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Weber
   (Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Lowenthal)
   (Principal coauthors: Senators Jackson and Mitchell)

                        MAY 13, 2014

   Relative to Femicide and Gendercide Prevention and Awareness
Month.



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   ACR 149, as introduced, Weber. Femicide and Gendercide Prevention
and Awareness Month.
   This measure would proclaim May 2014, and each month of May
thereafter, Femicide and Gendercide Awareness and Prevention Month.
   Fiscal committee: no.



   WHEREAS, According to estimates by the United Nations (UN), up to
200 million women and girls are demographically missing, which
implies that the number of missing women, killed for gender-related
reasons, is of the same magnitude as the estimated 191 million human
beings who have lost their lives directly or indirectly as a result
of all the conflicts and wars of the 20th century; and
   WHEREAS, The kidnapping by militants of approximately 300 Nigerian
girls from Chibok Government Girls Secondary School in April 2014
has caused a worldwide outcry for their release and has brought world
attention once again to crimes against girls and women; and
   WHEREAS, This type of gender-related violence has become too
common globally and has been identified by the world community by the
terms "femicide" or "feminicide." The term femicide was introduced
in 1976 by feminist author Dr. Diana E.H. Russell while testifying at
the International Tribunal on Crimes Against Women in Brussels, and
means the killing of females by males because they are females, or
the misogynous murder of women by men. Another applicable term is
"gendercide," which was first coined by American feminist Mary Anne
Warren in her 1985 book, "Gendercide: The Implications of Sex
Selection," and refers to gender-selective mass killing; and
   WHEREAS, Examples of femicide have been occurring in cities such
as Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, since 1992, where more than 1,400 women and
girls have been killed; and
   WHEREAS, Examples of gendercide have been common practice in
countries such as China and India, where the UN estimates over 200
million baby girls have been killed because they are undesirable and
even unacceptable; and
   WHEREAS, Women live in a very insecure world where many fall
victim to gender selective abortion and infanticide; other women do
not receive the same amount of food and medical attention as their
brothers, fathers, and husbands; other women fall prey to sexual
offenders, honor killings, and acid attacks, most often for refusing
a suitor; and scores of women succumb to the special horrors and
hardships that conflict, war, and postconflict situations reserve for
girls and women; and
   WHEREAS, A shocking number of women are killed within their own
walls through domestic violence; and
   WHEREAS, Rape and sexual exploitation remain a reality for
countless women, and millions of women are trafficked, some sold like
cattle; and
   WHEREAS, The State of California commends the Obama Administration
for helping the international community, and the Nigerian
government, by sending a team of military, law enforcement, and
hostage negotiators to do everything they can to recover these young
ladies; and
   WHEREAS, The State of California condemns, and desires to combat,
all acts of violence against women, be it femicide, gendercide,
sexual exploitation, or rape; and
   WHEREAS, Educating the public about the evils of femicide and
gendercide, including the adoption of a Femicide and Gendercide
Awareness and Prevention Month, are effective tools; now, therefore,
be it
   Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, the Senate
thereof concurring, That the Legislature hereby proclaims the month
of May of 2014, and each month of May thereafter, as Femicide and
Gendercide Awareness and Prevention Month; and be it further
   Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of
this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.