; Whereas prisoners of conscience are imprisoned, often tortured and sometimes executed, because their governments view as unacceptable who they are, what they believe, and how they have chosen to express their convictions; Whereas governments imprison prisoners of conscience for many reasons including to restrict the flow of information, narrow the space for independent civil society, diminish the power of the people to express their views, and prevent challenges to their authority; Whereas prisoners of conscience include artists, bloggers, community activists, dissidents, journalists, human rights activists, lawyers, labor leaders, teachers, religious leaders, and members of religious communities; Whereas through the Defending Freedoms Project of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission of the United States House of Representatives, undertaken in collaboration with the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) and Amnesty International/USA, Members of Congress advocate on behalf of prisoners of conscience from around the world and shine a light on them and the governments of the countries that have imprisoned them; Whereas Freedom House, Freedom Now, Reporters Without Borders, and Scholars At Risk have joined the Defending Freedom Project coalition; Whereas the goals of the Defending Freedoms Project are, at a minimum, to help improve the conditions under which prisoners of conscience are held, and ideally, secure their freedom, while encouraging countries to implement needed reforms consistent with internationally approved human rights standards; and Whereas a Prisoners of Conscience Day would underscore the importance of prioritizing the protection for and freedom of prisoners of conscience as a United States foreign policy goal: Now, therefore, be it