Full Text of HR0168 101st General Assembly
HR0168 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, It is highly fitting that we as a State and as | 3 | | individual citizens pay honor and respect to the men and women | 4 | | who have served our nation; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Many veterans returning from active duty | 6 | | experience not only
physical ailments but psychological ones as | 7 | | well, such as posttraumatic
stress disorder, anxiety, | 8 | | depression, and difficulty
readjusting to civilian life in | 9 | | general; and
| 10 | | WHEREAS, For some of these veterans, these psychological | 11 | | ailments turn
into chronic mental illnesses which can | 12 | | tragically result in death
from suicide; and | 13 | | WHEREAS, Between 2008 and 2016, there were more than 6,000 | 14 | | veteran
suicides each year across the United States; and | 15 | | WHEREAS, In 2016, the most recent year for which data is | 16 | | available, the suicide rate for
veterans was 1.5 times greater | 17 | | than non-veterans and accounted for 14
percent of all adult | 18 | | suicide deaths in the U.S. even though only eight
percent of | 19 | | the country's population has served in the military; and
| 20 | | WHEREAS, In 2016, 6,079 veterans tragically lost their |
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| 1 | | lives to suicide
in the United States with 162 veterans dying | 2 | | by suicide in the State
of Illinois; and
| 3 | | WHEREAS, While there are many wonderful and fitting | 4 | | memorials and
tributes to our nation's greatest heroes at Oak | 5 | | Ridge Cemetery, there
is no memorial for veterans who have died | 6 | | from suicide; and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, These brave service members deserve to be | 8 | | remembered and
honored for the great sacrifices they made | 9 | | serving this country; therefore, be it
| 10 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | 11 | | HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 12 | | we support veterans
currently struggling with mental illness | 13 | | and thoughts of suicide and
pay tribute to those veterans who | 14 | | have sadly lost their lives to suicide; and be it further | 15 | | RESOLVED, That we encourage the State
of Illinois to create | 16 | | a memorial for veterans who have died of suicide
to be included | 17 | | at Oak Ridge Cemetery where other war memorials
commemorate | 18 | | Illinois' veterans; and be it further
| 19 | | RESOLVED, That suitable copies of
this resolution be | 20 | | delivered to every member of the General Assembly,
the | 21 | | Governor, and the Director of Veteran
Affairs.
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