WASHINGTON – Yesterday, the House of Representatives, by a vote of 220 to 205, passed a bill that effectively eradicates many protections in the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) for immigrant women survivors of domestic violence. The Asian American Center for Advancing Justice (Advancing Justice)—Asian American Institute (AAI), Asian American Justice Center (AAJC), Asian Law Caucus (ALC) and Asian Pacific American Legal Center (APALC)—strongly condemns this result, which could jeopardize the lives of immigrant women, their children and other survivors of domestic violence.
“For nearly two decades, VAWA has been important in protecting all survivors of domestic violence, regardless of immigration status,” said Mee Moua, president and executive director of AAJC. “We are extremely disappointed that so many representatives voted for a bill that places hundreds of women and children at risk.”
Enacted in 1994 and reauthorized in 2000 and 2005, VAWA has a long history of uniting lawmakers with the common purpose of protecting survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking. VAWA recognizes that the noncitizen status of battered immigrants can make them particularly vulnerable. Abusers exploit their victims’ undocumented status, leaving the victim afraid to report the abuse to law enforcement and making them fearful of assisting with the prosecution of these crimes.
H.R. 4970 effectively rolls back many of the protections that have been available to immigrant victims of violence and creates additional hurdles for victims to obtain VAWA’s protections. Earlier this year the Senate passed a bill reauthorizing VAWA and leaving its protections in place. Congress will now have to reconcile the House and Senate VAWA bills.
“The Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, which include more than 5 million immigrant women, support a robust VAWA that protects all women,” said Stewart Kwoh, president and executive director of APALC. “We cannot go backward on this important issue.”
Advancing Justice applauds those members—including 22 Republicans—who stood up for immigrant women by voting against H.R. 4970. As Congress moves forward with the reconciliation process, we strongly urge Congress to reach a resolution that keeps VAWA as strong as possible for all women.
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