FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
September 23, 2020
CONTACT: press@iava.org

Washington D.C. – Today, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) celebrated the unanimous passage of the Honoring All Veterans Act (H.R. 3010) by the House of Representatives. This landmark piece of legislation would finally direct VA to update its motto to be inclusive of all veterans and make the Department more welcoming to the increasing numbers of women who serve in uniform. Since 2017, changing the VA motto has been the cornerstone of IAVA’s ground-breaking #SheWhoBorneTheBattle campaign and IAVA has been leading the charge in calling out to legislators to update language that explicitly excludes the millions of women who choose to serve this great nation.

“We are incredibly proud of the bipartisan leadership by Reps. Kathleen Rice and Brian Mast in leading their colleagues toward today’s House passage of H.R. 3010 to finally update the VA’s motto. This is an important big step in recognizing the military service of ALL veterans,” said Jeremy Butler, CEO of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.” This has been a priority for IAVA over the last three years on behalf of the fastest-growing segment of American veterans, and its time has definitely come.”

Over 345,000 women have deployed since 9/11 and IAVA has been at the forefront pushing for a culture change to fully recognize and improve services for female veterans. It is past time that the military culture and our nation embrace, recognize, celebrate, and support the service of all veterans that have served this nation. IAVA applauds the House for recognizing the importance of changing the outdated VA motto to represent ALL veterans, and we encourage the Senate to swiftly pass it and send it to the president. Learn more about IAVA’s work on these efforts here.

IAVA is the voice for the post-9/11 veteran generation. With over 400,000 veterans and allies nationwide, IAVA is the leader in non-partisan veteran advocacy and public awareness. We drive historic impacts for veterans and IAVA’s programs are second to none. Any veteran or family member in need can reach out to IAVA’s Quick Reaction Force at quickreactionforce.org or 855-91RAPID (855-917-2743) to be connected promptly with a veteran care manager who will assist. IAVA’s The Vote Hub is a free tool to register to vote and find polling information. IAVA’s membership is always growing. Join the movement at iava.org/membership.

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