On the recordMay 15, 2012
I thank the gentlelady. And thank you so much for pointing out, especially with these diverse communities, the real importance of developing programs and services that respond directly to those communities, whether they're immigrant populations, LGBT populations, native populations, and others, that require the services and support that have been offered traditionally in the Violence Against Women Act and its subsequent reauthorizations up until now. I'm actually reminded that, years ago, one of the most horrible calls that I responded to on a hotline was a woman in a lesbian relationship that was abusive and the difficulty of getting her into a program and services that were uniquely tailored to make sure that she could live safely. It is so sad for me to think, as the gentlewoman has pointed out, that we are going to roll back provisions in the Violence Against Women Act that would deny that woman the protections that would be offered to any other person who was experiencing domestic violence because we made some political and partisan decision about who should get services and who should be denied. So I thank the gentlelady. With that, I'd like to yield to my good friend, the gentleman from California (Mr. Farr).
