Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, l rise today in support of S.7, the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) Technical Amendment Act of 2022. This bill will ensure the full inclusion of Native Hawaiians, the indigenous peoples of our country whose origins lie in Hawaii, in the Services, Training, Officers and Prosecutors (STOP) Grants for Tribal Coalitions program under VAWA. Violence against indigenous women has reached crisis levels on tribal lands and in Alaska Native villages. In Hawaii, gender-based violence against Native Hawaiians is also at a breaking point. Much like their American Indian and Alaska Native counterparts elsewhere, Native Hawaiians face substantially higher rates of intimate partner violence, family violence, sexual assault and sex trafficking than any other racial or ethnic group in Hawaii. According to most available data from the Officer of Hawaiian Affairs, 67 to 77 percent of sex trafficking victims in Hawaii are Native Hawaiian women and girls, and 37 percent of reported child sex trafficking cases in Hawaii involve Native Hawaiians. They are also disproportionately represented across the many forms of sexual violence. To address these issues within Native Hawaiian communities, we must develop and implement community-driven, culturally relevant and intergenerational approaches for supporting Native Hawaiian women.…”