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Pelosi Remarks at Press Event Unveiling Bill to Defend Title IX

October 12, 2017

Contact: Ashley Etienne/Henry Connelly, 202-226-7616

Washington, D.C. – House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi joined Congresswoman Jackie Speier and the leadership of the Democratic Women's Working Group to unveiltheTitle IX Protection Act, a bill to codify the 2011 campus sexual assault guidance and 2014 Question and Answers document on sexual violence issued by the Obama Administration and the 2001 guidance on sexual harassment, which was issued by the Clinton Administration and later reissued in 2006 under the George W. Bush Administration. Below are the Leader's remarks:

Leader Pelosi. Thank you, all! I want to thank the Co-Chairs of Democratic Women's Working Group – Congresswoman Jackie Speier, Congresswoman Lois Frankel – for your leadership in bringing us together here today. I'm pleased to join our colleagues in welcoming our special guests who are with us: Fatima Goss Graves, Kimberly Churches, Sage Carson and Jess Davidson and all of you.

This is a very important day because you have heard our colleagues spell out the need for this. You heard [Congresswoman] Jackie Speier – you know Jackie Speier's legislation. Let me say of Jackie Speier, she has had relentless commitment to defending the rights of women and girls – in the home, in the workplace, in the military, on college campuses. She, again, has been relentless and so her legislation, Title IX Protection Act, is very important because Secretary DeVos's decision to roll back vital protections for victims of campus sexual assault is an alarming reminder of the White House's dismissive and cruel attitude towards survivors and students.

I am going to cut my remarks because my colleagues have already spelled out the provisions and the rest. But I will join them in saying that all women and men have the right to be free from abuse in the workplace and on campus and, again, in the military.

Now, the Administration has placed a target on the back of Title IX. They will not stop fighting until they have destroyed all civil rights protections and that is the point I want to make. The Secretary took the action, I thought, here it is, rearing its head. They've been after Title IX for a very long time, certain Members of Congress and members of this Administration.

Their departure from the forms of guidance that are in this bill under the Obama Administration, George W. Bush's Administration, the Clinton Administration. These partisan Administrations have supported some of the initiatives that are in the bill.

These folks have Title IX as the target and we cannot let them do that. So again, 45 years, it's been a wonderful role of protection for women and we must continue to support that.

With that, I yield back the balance of my time to my distinguished Chair of the Democratic Women's Working Group, Congresswoman Lois Frankel from Florida.

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