{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://norton.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/norton-thanks-dc-second-graders-for-her-resolution-designating-september", "Norton Thanks D.C. Second Graders for Her Resolution Designating September as National Peace Month", "2018-09-28", "2018", "2018-09", "Democrat", "House", "DC", "Eleanor Norton", "N000147", "norton.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON, D.C.Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) introduced a resolution to designate September as Peace Month and to call on Congress to take action to promote peace, at home and abroad, an idea that came from the Helpful Potato Bugs, a class of second grade students at Horace Mann Elementary School in the District of Columbia. The students submitted to the Congresswoman a handwritten note, adorned with peace signs, expressing their desire to help make the world a peaceful place and for all Americans to be nice, have no conflicts, and be very peaceful.\nListen to the children,' as they say. I am grateful to the incredibly bright and compassionate students at Horace Mann for writing me on the need for Congress to do more to promote peace here, around the world and in Congress, Norton said. Surely this resolution will serve as a reminder to my colleagues in the House and Senate, and to our country, that our children are watching, and Congress must do more to encourage action that help achieve peace around the world. We are grateful to the wise Helpful Potato Bugs second grade students for keeping Congress on its toes!\nNorton's full resolution is below.\nRESOLUTION\nExpressing support for the designation of September as Peace Month and calling on Congress to take action to promote peace.\nWhereas the United Nations designated September 21 International Day of Peaceotherwise known as Peace Day;\nWhereas the United Nations General Assembly declared Peace Day as a day devoted to commemorating and strengthening the ideals of peace, both within and among all nations and peoples;\nWhereas all United Nations member states, organizations, regional and nongovernmental organizations, and individuals are encouraged to celebrate and recognize global peace efforts on Peace Day;\nWhereas Peace Day represents shared hopes of an end to conflict in all forms;\nWhereas the United Nations calls for a 24-hour global ceasefire on Peace Day;\nWhereas this year's Peace Day theme is The Right to Peace  The Universal Declaration of Human Rights at 70;\nWhereas 2018 marks the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, a milestone development in contemporary human history promoting peace and well-being worldwide;\nWhereas violent conflicts could cost upwards of $13.6 trillion per year globally;\nWhereas conflict prevention measures could save between $5 billion to $70 billion per year on average;\nWhereas there is almost no interstate war;\nWhereas the absolute number of war deaths has been declining since 1945;\nWhereas life-threatening diseases are on the decline globally;\nWhereas measles deaths globally were 90,000 in 2016, down from 550,000 in 2000;\nWhereas 2017 saw only 19 cases of polio globally compared to an average of 350,000 per year in the 1980s;\nWhereas the world is close to eradicating the guinea worm disease;\nWhereas there were less than 5,000 deaths from natural disasters in 2017;\nWhereas nearly a billion people have escaped extreme poverty since 1999;\nWhereas the United Nations met its Millennium Development Goal of halving the extreme poverty rate in 1990 by 2010, five years ahead of schedule;\nWhereas the global unemployment rate fell from 6.4 percent in 2000 to 5.6 percent in 2017;\nWhereas the global maternal mortality rate declined by 47 percent between 2000 and 2016;\nWhereas the global mortality rate for children under 5 fell by 44 percent and the neonatal mortality rate fell by 39 percent in the same time period;\nWhereas global peace promotion efforts improve the lives of Americans and all peoples;\nWhereas the United States has a long history of promoting peace and human rights at home and abroad;\nWhereas September would be an appropriate month to designate as Peace Month: Now, therefore be it\nResolved, That the House of Representatives\n supports the designation of Peace Month; and\n\tcalls on Congress to promote peace, both at home and abroad.\n ###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://norton.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/norton-thanks-dc-second-graders-for-her-resolution-designating-september"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 3.315508831292391, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}