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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, According to the United States Census Bureau, 37 |
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million Americans, representing 12.7 percent of the nation's |
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population, were living in poverty in 2004; regrettably, this |
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figure signified an increase of 1.1 million people from the |
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previous year; and |
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WHEREAS, Although we have made progress combating this |
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intractable human problem since President Lyndon Baines Johnson |
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declared an "unconditional war on poverty" more than 40 years ago, |
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rapid economic and demographic changes since that time have caused |
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economic inequality between the poorest of the poor in America and |
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the rest of the nation to rise sharply; and |
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WHEREAS, Because poverty and inequality are often |
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inextricably linked, individuals, families, and even entire |
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neighborhood communities that fall behind economically often fall |
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behind in other ways that make it difficult for them, and ultimately |
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their children, to compete successfully with their more advantaged |
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counterparts and thus end the cycle of poverty; regardless of the |
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conditions that give rise to poverty, the economic inequality and |
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social injustice that result are antithetical to the principles |
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upon which this nation and this state were founded; now, therefore, |
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be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 80th Texas |
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Legislature hereby express its support for a bill of rights for the |
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poor based on the following principles: (1) all people, and |
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especially the poor, have the right to pursue life, liberty, and |
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happiness without institutional barriers; (2) the poor have a right |
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to a public policy agenda that invests in human beings; (3) every |
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child should have access to quality health care, education, and |
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housing and live in a safe community; (4) all people have a |
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constitutional right to equal protection under the law and, to that |
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end, the poor must be protected from injustice in the legal system; |
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(5) the poor have the right to full employment and a guaranteed |
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income that enables them to rise above the poverty level; (6) the |
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poor should not be victimized by inequality of opportunity; (7) the |
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poor must be protected from environmental racism that |
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disproportionately targets impoverished communities with toxic |
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waste sites and other elements that adversely affect the atmosphere |
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and health of persons in those communities; (8) the poor have a |
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right to substance-abuse treatment and that substance-abuse |
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treatment, rather than incarceration, should be the first response |
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to substance abuse; (9) the poor have a right to quality health care |
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that is affordable; and (10) the foreign policy of the United States |
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should be based on justice and freedom and should ensure the |
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elimination of economic exploitation of impoverished people |
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throughout the world. |