Congress demands women's leadership in Haiti—and reverses State Dept cuts
H.Res. 1018 — Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that protecting and advancing the rights of women and girls in the Republic of Haiti is critical to the success of Haiti's transition from crisis and its future stability, condemning the failure to center women's leadership and distinct needs to date, and calling for urgent measures to secure all human rights of women and girls in Haiti. · Filed by Yvette Clarke (D-NY) · 47 cosponsors · Introduced Jan 22, 2026 · Referred to committee
Your members of Congress
Enter a ZIP to see where your representative and both senators stood on this bill.
Looked up on this device — your ZIP is never stored on our servers.
What it does
This House resolution expresses support for protecting women's rights in Haiti and criticizes the Haitian transitional government for excluding women from leadership roles and failing to address widespread sexual violence. It calls on the U.S. government to prioritize women's participation in Haiti's governance, fund survivor services, and reverse recent State Department and Defense Department cuts to women's rights programs.
Why we flagged it
This is a non-binding sense-of-Congress resolution expressing legislative intent on Haiti policy and women's rights, not a law that appropriates funds or creates binding obligations. It functions as a statement of values and a call for executive action.
What the text implies
- The resolution directly criticizes the Trump administration's closure of the Office of Global Women's Issues and defunding of the Women, Peace, and Security program at DoD, signaling congressional opposition to those executive actions and potentially constraining future similar moves.
- By invoking the Women, Peace, and Security Act of 2017 (signed by Trump) and the 2019 U.S. Strategy on Women, Peace, and Security, the resolution creates a legislative record that may be used to challenge or reverse the administration's recent institutional dismantling of these programs.
The full analysis lists 3 implications of this text.
Who it affects
The resolution advocates for strengthened protections against gender-based violence, increased women's representation in governance, and survivor support services in Haiti—outcomes that would materially improve safety and rights for Haitian women and girls. U.S.