Chairman Crowley Advocates for $25 Million to Eliminate Female Genital Mutilation in Government Funding Bill
(Queens, NY) – Chairman of the House Democratic Caucus Joe Crowley (D-NY) requested $25 million in federal funding for efforts to eliminate female genital mutilation (FGM) in the United States and overseas.
Chairman Crowley has been a steadfast leader in the global fight to end FGM, a goal that many experts believe is achievable within a decade. Nearly two dozen bipartisan Members of Congress signed on to Crowley’s letter to the House Appropriations Committee requesting an increase in funding to combat this egregious human rights abuse.
“To fulfill the international commitment to eliminate FGM, the U.S. must remain vigilant and pursue a comprehensive approach,” the lawmakers wrote. “In that vein, we request no less than $25,000,000 be dedicated to the implementation of a coordinated and comprehensive effort to end FGM and meet the needs of the women and girls affected by FGM.”
In the United States alone, more than 500,000 women and girls have experienced, or are at risk of, FGM. In 2012, the U.S. supported the U.N. resolution banning FGM and calling on all countries to develop comprehensive strategies to end the practice by 2030, a goal that Chairman Crowley strongly supports.
For several years, Chairman Crowley has led efforts to include funding to address FGM in government funding bills. In 2015, he introduced The Zero Tolerance for FGM Act with Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) to implement a national strategy to protect American girls from FGM. Chairman Crowley is also the author of The Girls Protection Act, which would have amended federal law to protect American minors at risk of FGM.
The full letter can be read here.
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