[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 568 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 568
Encouraging the celebration of the month of June as LGBTQIA+ Pride
Month.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 30, 2023
Mr. Green of Texas (for himself, Mr. Schiff, Mr. Smith of Washington,
Mr. Espaillat, Mr. Carson, Ms. Salinas, Mr. Kim of New Jersey, Ms.
Craig, Ms. Eshoo, Ms. Lee of California, Ms. Balint, Ms. McCollum, Mr.
Foster, Mrs. Watson Coleman, Mr. Sherman, Mr. Higgins of New York, Ms.
Pettersen, Mr. Ruppersberger, Ms. Pingree, Mr. Allred, Mr. Kildee, Mr.
Davis of Illinois, Mr. Soto, Mr. David Scott of Georgia, Mr. Trone,
Mrs. Dingell, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, Ms. Ross, Mr. Kilmer, Ms. Titus,
Mr. Payne, Mr. Blumenauer, Ms. Norton, Ms. Slotkin, Mr. Cleaver, Mr.
Pallone, Ms. Wilson of Florida, Mr. Connolly, Mrs. Napolitano, Ms.
Meng, Mr. Landsman, Ms. Moore of Wisconsin, Ms. Stevens, Mr. Johnson of
Georgia, Ms. Scholten, Ms. Omar, Mr. Correa, Mrs. Hayes, Mr. Bowman,
Mr. Raskin, Ms. Schakowsky, Mr. Huffman, Ms. Crockett, Mr. Crow, Mr.
Jackson of North Carolina, Mrs. McClellan, Mr. Nadler, Mr. Garcia of
Illinois, Ms. Tokuda, Mr. Costa, Mr. Himes, Mr. Gomez, Mr. Panetta, Mr.
Castro of Texas, Mr. Neguse, Mr. Garamendi, Mr. Morelle, Mrs. Beatty,
Mr. Vargas, Ms. Chu, Ms. Brownley, Ms. Castor of Florida, Ms. Manning,
Ms. Porter, Mr. Mullin, Mr. Mfume, Ms. Sanchez, Ms. Blunt Rochester,
Mrs. Fletcher, Mr. Doggett, Mrs. Trahan, Ms. Lois Frankel of Florida,
Mrs. McBath, Ms. Dean of Pennsylvania, Ms. Kaptur, Ms. Strickland, Mr.
DeSaulnier, Mr. Takano, Ms. Scanlon, Mr. Frost, Ms. Stansbury, Mr.
Quigley, Mr. McGarvey, Ms. Williams of Georgia, Ms. Budzinski, Mrs.
Torres of California, Ms. Velazquez, Mr. Tonko, Ms. Jayapal, Ms. Tlaib,
Mr. Grijalva, Ms. Kuster, Mr. Larsen of Washington, Mr. Torres of New
York, Mr. Robert Garcia of California, Ms. Kelly of Illinois, Ms.
DeLauro, Mr. Carbajal, Ms. Jacobs, Mr. Peters, Mr. Casten, Mr. Moulton,
Ms. Davids of Kansas, Mrs. Cherfilus-McCormick, Ms. Jackson Lee, Ms.
Brown, Mr. Thanedar, Mr. Hoyer, Mr. Lynch, Mr. Cohen, Ms. Lee of
Pennsylvania, Ms. Lee of Nevada, Ms. DelBene, Ms. Bonamici, Ms.
Kamlager-Dove, Ms. Garcia of Texas, Mr. Lieu, Ms. Leger Fernandez, Ms.
Sewell, Mr. Cardenas, Mr. Carter of Louisiana, Mrs. Foushee, Mr.
Nickel, Mr. Keating, Ms. Clarke of New York, Ms. Lofgren, and Mr.
Jackson of Illinois) submitted the following resolution; which was
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Encouraging the celebration of the month of June as LGBTQIA+ Pride
Month.
Whereas this resolution may be cited as the ``Original LGBTQIA+ Pride Month
Resolution of 2023'';
Whereas the Honorable Barney Frank, Member of Congress from 1981 to 2013, is
recognized as an honorary cosponsor of this resolution;
Whereas Members of this Congress support the rights, freedoms, and equality of
those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and
asexual (LGBTQIA+);
Whereas, in August of 1966, the ``Screaming Queens'' of the Gene Compton's
Cafeteria Uprising in the Tenderloin District of San Francisco led one
of the first recorded transgender uprisings that erupted in response to
police harassment, and continued to protest against police brutality and
improper policing of the LGBTQIA+ community;
Whereas those who took a stand for human rights and dignity at the Stonewall Inn
Uprising in New York City on June 28, 1969, were led by two brave and
visible transgender women of color, Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera;
Whereas the LGBTQIA+ protesters at the Stonewall Inn Uprising and Gene Compton's
Cafeteria Uprising were subject to police harassment and invidious
discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity;
Whereas within years of these decisive moments in history, LGBTQIA+ rights
organizations were created in every major city of the United States;
Whereas Brenda Howard, often called ``The Mother of Pride,'' helped to plan a
Gay Pride Week and the Christopher Street Liberation Day Parade in June
of 1970 to commemorate the first anniversary of the Stonewall Inn
Uprising;
Whereas Brenda Howard's Gay Pride Week and Christopher Street Liberation Day
Parade evolved into the annual New York City Pride March and Pride
celebrations now known around the world;
Whereas the Stonewall Inn Uprising and the Gene Compton's Cafeteria Uprising
have been followed by many historic milestones for the LGBTQIA+
community;
Whereas, in December of 1973, the board of the American Psychiatric Association
voted to remove homosexuality from the list of mental illnesses of the
American Psychiatric Association;
Whereas, in 1974, Elaine Noble became the first openly LGBTQIA+ candidate
elected to a State legislature in the United States when she won a seat
in the Massachusetts House of Representatives;
Whereas, in 1975, the Civil Service Commission eliminated the ban on the
employment of gay people in most Federal jobs;
Whereas, on January 8, 1978, Harvey Milk made national news when he was sworn in
as an openly gay member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors;
Whereas, on June 25 of 1978, gay artist Gilbert Baker debuted a rainbow flag at
the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day parade in response to calls by gay
elected officials to designate a symbol for the community, and the flag
was officially established as a symbol for LGBTQ pride in 1994;
Whereas, in October of 1979, 75,000 people participated in the National March on
Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights to demand equal civil rights for
LGBTQIA+ people, which was inspired by the March on Washington in 1963
and the assassination of Harvey Milk in 1978;
Whereas Democrats took a stance in support of gay rights at the Democratic
National Convention in 1980;
Whereas, in 1982, Wisconsin became the first State to ban discrimination on the
basis of sexual orientation;
Whereas, in 1983, after initial refusal from lead organizers to allow an openly
LGBTQIA+ person to speak, Audre Lorde was selected by Black LGBTQIA+
groups to speak at the 20th-anniversary commemoration of Dr. Martin
Luther King, Jr.'s March on Washington in 1963;
Whereas, in October of 1987, thousands of activists took part in the Second
National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights to demand that
President Reagan address the AIDS crisis;
Whereas, in 1987, Representative Barney Frank of Massachusetts became the first
United States Representative to voluntarily come out as an openly gay
Member of Congress;
Whereas Urvashi Vaid cofounded the Creating Change Conference in 1988, the
largest annual LGBTQIA+ conference convening in the United States;
Whereas, in 1991, Monica Helms designed the transgender flag and introduced it
at the 2000 Phoenix Pride parade to represent the rights and diversity
of transgender people;
Whereas, in March of 1991, Glen Maxey became the first openly LGBTQIA+ person
elected to the Texas State House;
Whereas, on April 25, 1993, more than a million people took part in the March on
Washington for Lesbian, Gay, and Bi Equal Rights and Liberation, one of
the largest protests in United States history;
Whereas, on May 20, 1996, the Supreme Court of the United States held in Romer
v. Evans that a Colorado constitutional amendment preventing the
enactment of nondiscrimination protections for gay, lesbian, and
bisexual persons in Colorado was unconstitutional;
Whereas, on October 6, 1998, Matthew Shepard, a gay student at the University of
Wyoming, was beaten, tortured, and left to die, drawing attention to
sexual-orientation related hate crimes and ultimately to the passage of
the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act;
Whereas, on November 28, 1998, Rita Hester, a Black transgender woman, was
brutally murdered in her home, sparking the advent of Transgender Day of
Remembrance, which is observed every year on November 20, to remember
those who have been killed due to transphobia;
Whereas, in 2000, Vermont became the first State in the United States to legally
recognize civil unions between same-sex couples;
Whereas, on June 8, 2000, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals held in Rosa v.
Park West Bank that a transgender person had recourse under the
prohibition on sex discrimination provided for in the Equal Credit
Opportunity Act after being denied a loan for dressing in traditionally
feminine attire;
Whereas, in December of 2000, the Netherlands became the first nation to
legalize same-sex marriage when the States General of the Netherlands
passed, by a three-to-one margin, a landmark bill allowing same-sex
marriage;
Whereas in 2003, David Cicilline became the first openly gay mayor of a United
States capital when he was elected to lead Providence, Rhode Island;
Whereas, on June 26, 2003, the Supreme Court of the United States held in
Lawrence v. Texas that under the 14th Amendment, States could not
criminalize the private, intimate relationships of same-sex couples;
Whereas, on August 5, 2004, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals held in Smith v.
City of Salem that title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects
transgender employees from workplace discrimination;
Whereas, in 2008, a Latino transgender man, Diego Miguel Sanchez, became the
first openly transgender person appointed to the Platform Committee of
the Democratic National Committee;
Whereas, on November 4, 2008, Stu Rasmussen, of Silverton, Oregon, became the
first openly transgender person to be elected mayor in the United
States;
Whereas, in 2009, Diego Miguel Sanchez became the first openly transgender
senior congressional staffer on Capitol Hill, appointed by
Representative Barney Frank;
Whereas, on October 28, 2009, the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate
Crimes Prevention Act was passed by Congress and signed into law by
President Barack Obama, and the bill expanded existing Federal hate
crimes laws to include crimes motivated by the actual or perceived
gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability of a victim;
Whereas, on January 4, 2010, Mayor Annise D. Parker was sworn in as the first
openly lesbian Mayor of Houston;
Whereas, on November 2, 2010, Victoria Kolakowski was elected to the Alameda
County Superior Court in California, becoming the first openly
transgender woman to serve as a trial court judge in the United States;
Whereas, on November 17, 2010, Phyllis Frye was appointed to the City of Houston
Municipal Courts as the first openly transgender judge appointed in the
United States;
Whereas Congress passed and President Barack Obama signed the repeal of Defense
Directive 1304.26 (``Don't Ask, Don't Tell'') in December of 2010,
allowing gay, lesbian, and bisexual persons to serve openly in the
United States Armed Forces;
Whereas, in October of 2011, the Girl Scouts of America opened membership to a
7-year-old transgender girl;
Whereas, in December of 2011, Lane Lewis became the first gay man elected County
Chair of the Democratic Party of Harris County, the 3rd largest county
in the United States;
Whereas 2012 was the first year in which all 50 States in the United States had
not less than 1 openly LGBTQIA+ elected official;
Whereas, on April 20, 2012, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ruled
that discrimination on the basis of gender identity is ``sex
discrimination'' for purposes of title VII of the Civil Rights Act of
1964;
Whereas, on June 12, 2012, Kylar Broadus became the first openly transgender
person to testify in a hearing before the United States Senate;
Whereas, on November 6, 2012, Representative Mark Takano of California, a
Japanese American, became the first openly gay, person of color elected
to Congress;
Whereas, in 2013, the first LGBTQ Pride Month resolution was introduced by
Representative Al Green of Texas;
Whereas, on January 3, 2013, Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin was sworn in as the
first openly gay United States Senator;
Whereas, on January 3, 2013, Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona was sworn in as the first
openly bisexual Member of Congress;
Whereas, on March 7, 2013, the Violence Against Women Act of 1994 was
reauthorized and included protections for transgender persons;
Whereas, on April 29, 2013, National Basketball Association athlete Jason
Collins became the first active male athlete in a North American major
sports league to come out as gay;
Whereas, on June 26, 2013, the Supreme Court held in United States v. Windsor
that section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act was unconstitutional and
that the Federal Government cannot discriminate against married same-sex
couples when determining Federal rights, benefits, and obligations;
Whereas, in November of 2013, Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia issued a
policy designed to protect and guarantee equal treatment of gay,
lesbian, bisexual, and transgender inmates, including allowing
transgender individuals to be housed based on the gender they identify
with instead of their biological sex;
Whereas, on November 20, 2013, President Barack Obama posthumously awarded a
Presidential Medal of Freedom to civil rights pioneer Bayard Rustin, an
openly gay Black man who organized the March on Washington in 1963 and
presented the crucial 10 demands of the March on Washington in the
summer of 1963;
Whereas, on June 9, 2014, Laverne Cox became the first openly transgender person
on the cover of Time Magazine;
Whereas, on June 17, 2014, Darrin P. Gayles was the first openly gay Black man
to be confirmed as a Federal judge;
Whereas, on July 10, 2014, Laverne Cox became the first openly transgender
person to be nominated for an Emmy Award;
Whereas, on July 21, 2014, President Barack Obama took action to protect
LGBTQIA+ workers by signing an Executive order prohibiting Federal
contractors from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation or
gender identity;
Whereas, on June 8, 2015, Olympic triathlete Chris Mosier became the first
transgender athlete to earn a spot on Team USA;
Whereas, on June 9, 2015, the equal opportunity policy of the United States
Armed Forces was updated to protect servicemembers from harassment and
discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation;
Whereas, on June 23, 2015, Stonewall Inn in New York City received a landmark
designation by the Landmarks Preservation Commission of New York City so
that the Stonewall Inn cannot be torn down or developed without
approval;
Whereas, on June 26, 2015, the Supreme Court in Obergefell v. Hodges held in a
5-4 ruling that the 14th Amendment requires all States to license
marriages between same-sex couples and to recognize all marriages that
were lawfully performed in a different State;
Whereas, on July 17, 2015, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ruled
that discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation is ``sex
discrimination'' for purposes of title VII of the Civil Rights Act of
1964;
Whereas, on July 23, 2015, H.R. 3185, with the short title the Equality Act, was
introduced in the 114th Congress by Representative David Cicilline with
bipartisan support, which amends the Nation's Federal civil rights laws
to explicitly include sexual orientation and gender identity among the
prohibited categories of discrimination in employment, housing, credit,
education, public accommodation, federally funded programs, and jury
service;
Whereas, on October 31, 2015, the Obama administration announced that it would
approve the spouses of refugees who are approved for resettlement in the
United States, including same-sex spouses who come from countries where
legal unions are not possible;
Whereas, according to a Human Rights Campaign tally, more than 200 items of
legislation considered to be anti-LGBTQIA+ were introduced across 34
States during the first 10 weeks of 2016;
Whereas threats to the civil liberties of LGBTQIA+ people have increased on the
State level since the holding of the Supreme Court in Obergefell v.
Hodges;
Whereas, in February of 2016, the Greater Houston LGBT Chamber of Commerce
launched, becoming one of the leading economic voices in the greater
Houston region focusing on economic empowerment and inclusion for
LGBTQIA+ entrepreneurs and professionals;
Whereas, on May 13, 2016, the Department of Justice and the Department of
Education jointly released guidance to provide educators the information
they need to ensure that transgender students attend school in an
environment free from discrimination on the basis of sex;
Whereas, on May 18, 2016, Eric Fanning was sworn in as Secretary of the Army,
the first time a branch of the United States Armed Forces was led by an
openly gay person;
Whereas members of the LGBTQIA+ community are disproportionately affected by
violence and hate crimes;
Whereas, on June 12, 2016, one of the deadliest mass shootings in the modern
history of the United States occurred at a gay nightclub in Orlando,
Florida, on Latin night, leaving 49 people dead and another 53 people
wounded;
Whereas, since 2013, nearly two-thirds of fatal violent activities toward
transgender and gender-nonconforming people have involved a gun;
Whereas 40 percent of transgender people report having attempted suicide in
their lifetime, nearly 9 times the national average;
Whereas 54 percent of transgender people responding to a 2015 survey experienced
some form of intimate partner violence, including acts involving
coercive control and physical harm;
Whereas LGBTQIA+ youth experience dating violence at rates significantly higher
than their non-LGBTQIA+ peers;
Whereas, on June 24, 2016, President Barack Obama designated the first national
monument to LGBTQIA+ rights at the site of the Stonewall Uprising,
cementing its significance in LGBTQIA+ history as well as the overall
history of the United States;
Whereas, on June 30, 2016, the Department of Defense announced an immediate
policy change allowing transgender servicemembers to serve openly
without fear of retribution or penalty;
Whereas, on July 5, 2016, the National Congress of Parents and Teachers, known
as the National PTA, adopted a resolution entitled ``Recognition of
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer/Questioning (LGBTQ)
Individuals as a Protected Class'';
Whereas, on July 28, 2016, Sarah McBride, national press secretary for the Human
Rights Campaign, spoke at the Democratic National Convention, making her
the first transgender person to address a major party convention;
Whereas, on November 8, 2016, Kate Brown of Oregon became the first openly
bisexual person to win a gubernatorial election;
Whereas, on January 30, 2017, the Boy Scouts of America announced that they
would open membership to transgender boys;
Whereas, on April 4, 2017, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals held in Hively
v. Ivy Tech Community College that lesbian, gay, and bisexual employees
are protected from workplace discrimination under title VII of the Civil
Rights Act of 1964;
Whereas, on May 30, 2017, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals held in Whitaker
v. Kenosha Unified School District that transgender students are
protected from discrimination under title IX of the Education Amendments
of 1972 and under the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment;
Whereas, on June 27, 2017, residents of the District of Columbia became the
first in the United States to be allowed to select a gender-neutral
option on their driver license;
Whereas the first transgender doll was released in July of 2017, modeled after
LGBTQIA+ activist Jazz Jennings;
Whereas, on November 7, 2017, the election of Andrea Jenkins to the Minneapolis
City Council made her the first openly transgender woman to be elected
to public office in a major United States city;
Whereas, on November 7, 2017, Phillipe Cunningham's election to the Minneapolis
City Council made him the first openly transgender man to be elected to
the city council of a major United States city;
Whereas, on November 7, 2017, Danica Roem of Virginia became the first openly
transgender person to be elected to and seated in a State legislature;
Whereas, on March 4, 2018, Daniela Vega became the first openly transgender
person to present at the Academy Awards;
Whereas, on June 3, 2018, FX aired the show ``Pose'', making television history
by featuring the largest cast of transgender actors in a television
series;
Whereas, on June 4, 2018, the Supreme Court reaffirmed in Masterpiece Cakeshop
v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission that businesses do not have a broad
license to discriminate against LGBTQIA+ Americans;
Whereas, on November 6, 2018, Democratic Representative Jared Polis was elected
governor of Colorado, becoming the first openly gay man to be elected
governor in the United States;
Whereas, on November 6, 2018, Democratic Representative Sharice Davids became
the first openly lesbian Representative from Kansas in Congress;
Whereas, on December 17, 2018, Angela Ponce, Miss Spain, became the first
transgender woman to compete in the Miss Universe pageant;
Whereas, on February 27, 2019, Navy Lieutenant Commander Blake Dremann, Army
Captain Alivia Stehlik, Army Captain Jennifer Peace, Army Staff Sergeant
Patricia King, and Navy Petty Officer Third Class Akira Wyatt became the
first openly transgender servicemembers to testify before Congress;
Whereas, on April 23, 2019, Jane Castor became the first openly LGBTQIA+ person
elected as mayor in Tampa, Florida;
Whereas, in April of 2019, Morehouse College announced that the historically
all-male school would begin admitting transgender men in 2020;
Whereas, on May 17, 2019, the House of Representatives passed the Equality Act,
which amends the Federal civil rights laws of the United States to
explicitly include sexual orientation and gender identity among the
prohibited categories of discrimination in employment, housing, credit,
education, public accommodation, federally funded programs, and jury
service;
Whereas, on May 20, 2019, Lori Lightfoot was sworn in as Mayor of Chicago,
becoming the first Black lesbian mayor;
Whereas, on May 24, 2019, Taiwan became the first nation in Asia to legally
recognize same-sex marriage;
Whereas, in May of 2019, the Supreme Court of Brazil held that homophobia and
transphobia would become punishable under the same law banning racial
discrimination;
Whereas, in June of 2019, New York City became the first city in the United
States to host the WorldPride conference;
Whereas June 28, 2019, marked the 50th anniversary of the courageous uprising at
Stonewall Inn;
Whereas, in July of 2019, Megan Rapinoe, an openly lesbian co-captain of the
United States Women's National Soccer Team, led her team to victory at
the Women's World Cup in France;
Whereas, on September 22, 2019, Billy Porter became the first openly gay Black
man to win an Emmy for best lead actor in a drama series;
Whereas, on June 15, 2020, the Supreme Court held that title VII of the Civil
Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex,
also applies to sexual orientation and gender identity;
Whereas, in November of 2020, 1,006 or more LGBTQIA+ candidates ran for office
in the United States, more than ever before;
Whereas, in November of 2020, Sarah McBride became the first openly transgender
State senator in the United States, making her the highest-ranking
openly transgender public official in United States history;
Whereas, in November of 2020, Representatives Ritchie Torres and Mondaire Jones,
both Members of Congress representing New York districts, became the
first openly gay Black persons elected to Congress;
Whereas, on February 11, 2021, the United States Department of Housing and Urban
Development issued a memorandum prohibiting discrimination based on an
individual's sexual orientation or gender identity;
Whereas, on February 18, 2021, Representative David Cicilline of Rhode Island
introduced the Equality Act, H.R. 5, in the 117th Congress, which amends
Federal civil rights laws to explicitly include sexual orientation and
gender identity among the prohibited categories of discrimination in
employment, housing, credit, education, public accommodation, federally
funded programs, and jury service;
Whereas, on March 24, 2021, Admiral Rachel Levine became the first openly
transgender person to hold an office requiring confirmation by the
Senate, and on October 19, 2021, became the first openly transgender
four-star officer in the uniformed services;
Whereas, on May 16, 2022, Karine Jean-Pierre became the first Black and openly
gay White House Press Secretary;
Whereas, as of 2023, marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and
recognized in 34 Nations; and
Whereas the inclusion and acceptance of LGBTQIA+ persons in the United States
continues to expand, with an understanding that Americans will remain
steadfast in pursuing the goal of complete equality and respect for all,
regardless of whom they love or who they are: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) recognizes that lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender,
queer, intersex, and asexual (LGBTQIA+) rights are human rights
and are protected by the Constitution;
(2) recognizes that all United States citizens should be
treated fairly and equally regardless of sexual orientation,
sex characteristics, or gender identity and that LGBTQIA+
history plays an integral role in the history of the United
States;
(3) acknowledges the struggle of the Stonewall Inn and Gene
Compton's Cafeteria protesters and countless other lesbian,
gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and asexual people
for equality;
(4) encourages the celebration of LGBTQIA+ Pride Month to
provide a continuing opportunity for all people in the United
States to learn about the discrimination and inequality that
lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and
asexual people have faced, and continue to face, in tandem with
triumphs over tragedy and victories in spite of barriers; and
(5) agrees that the United States must continue to strive
to ensure that the promise of equality is realized for all
people of the United States.
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