Body
WHEREAS, the City of Pittsburgh takes great pleasure in recognizing those citizens who, through dedication and excellence, contribute in a meaningful way to the well-being of their communities and ultimately to all the people of this great Commonwealth; and,
WHEREAS, Sarah Pesi is being honored today for her public service in advocating for a law to be passed in Pennsylvania to expand protections for victims of stalking and sexual assault; and,
WHEREAS, Sarah transformed her own terrifying experience of being a victim of stalking into a powerful desire to protect and enhance the rights of other victims; and,
WHEREAS, Sarah's valiant work to make this bill a law will increase the rights and opportunities of thousands of women and children; and,
WHEREAS, at the age of fourteen, Sarah wrote the first draft of this bill and had her State Representative introduce it to the Pennsylvania legislature; and,
WHEREAS, Sarah became part of the Women and Girls Foundation's GirlGov program, which supported Sarah's advocacy efforts; and,
WHEREAS, after several years of diligence, hard work, and commitment, Sarah, the Women and Girls Foundation, the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape, with leadership from Senator Greenleaf and Representative Ellis, were successful in their efforts to merge "Sarah's Bill" into SB 681 and get her legislation approved by the PA legislature; and,
WHEREAS, the Governor of Pennsylvania signed SB 681, known as "Sarah's Bill,” into law in the summer of 2014.
Title
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the City Council of Pittsburgh congratulates Sarah Pesi upon her richly deserved successes and affirmatively states that she is a shining example of community spirit and civic engagement, which will surely inspire other teens to follow in her footsteps in their pursuit of social justice.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Council of the City of Pittsburgh does hereby declare December 2, 2014 to be “Sarah Pesi Day” in the ...
Click here for full text