LOUISIANA REPUBLICANS CHOOSE POLITICS OVER FAMILY VALUES BY VOTING NO VOTE ON VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT

Louisiana Republican Congressmen Steve Scalise, Mike Johnson, Clay Higgins, and Garrett Graves all voted not to re-authorize the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) on Wednesday night (March 17, 2021). 

“It’s disheartening and frustrating that our Republican Congressmen couldn’t set aside their partisan blinders to pass a landmark bill that protects women against violence,” said Katie Bernhardt, Chair of the Louisiana Democratic Party. “They once again betrayed the family values they love to tout, and this time just hours after six Asian American women were brutally murdered in Atlanta, Georgia by a deranged gunman.”

According to the National Network to End Domestic Violence, VAWA “creates and supports comprehensive, cost-effective responses to domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking.” 

The bill was first enacted almost three decades ago by then-Senator Joe Biden. The most recent iteration of VAWA passed by House Democrats with the support of just 29 Republicans (244-172) strengthens safeguards for the LBGTQ community, indigenous women, and it closes the “boyfriend loophole,” preventing individuals convicted of stalking from purchasing a firearm.