On Wednesday the Texas House unanimously passed a resolution urging the US Congress to pass legislation referred to as the ‘I Am Vanessa Guillén Act”.
The Federal legislation would make sexual harassment a punishable crime under the Uniform Code of Military Justice and would allow for independent investigations outside of the chain of command.
Named after the murdered 20-year-old Army Specialist who went missing from Fort Hood one year ago. The federal legislation was filed in the both the US House and Senate last September, but it hasn’t moved since.
Texas State Representative Christina Morales’ resolution was designed to apply pressure. “This resolution is our sympathy card to the family,” said Morales as she laid out the bill. “This resolution urges Congress to take action through the I Am Vanessa Guillén Act.”
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Guillén went missing from Fort Hood on April 22, 2020 and her body wasn’t found for another two months. “Now we know she was sexually harassed, brutally murdered, dismembered, burned and buried under concrete,” added Morales. “Her story and #IAMVanessaGuillen sparked a national wave of support for her family and brought to light more stories of sexual harassment and fear of retaliation in the military.”
State Senator César Blanco filed Senate Bill 623, which would support victims of sexual assault in the Texas Military Forces with additional resources and avenues for justice.
Texas lawmakers have also filed legislation to rename a strip of State Highway 3 in Harris County, where Guillen is from, as the Vanessa Guillén Memorial Highway and to make September 30, her birthday, Vanessa Guillén Day in Texas.
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