As I write this today I am reminded that President Biden was sworn in only two weeks ago. In two weeks’ time he has undone so much of the wrong his predecessor did in four years against us. Such wonderful and great news for our LGBTQ Community.
2020 did however give us a few wins against those odds. The Supreme Court ruled against anti-LGBTQ employment discrimination, ruling it illegal. Illegal to discriminate against our sexual orientation and gender identity. In 2020 three more states and the District of Columbia outlawed gay and trans panic defenses.
But the best news for us was that “America voted for a Rainbow wave of elected officials. 334 LGBTQ candidates won their elections last year. Candidates like Delaware’s Sarah McBride, the nation’s first out transgender state senator. New York’s Ritchie Torres was elected as one of the first out gay Black members of Congress.” Quoted from LGBTQ Nation, on January 19, 2021.
Forward to 2021. Dr. Rachel Levine, the former Pennsylvania Surgeon General, has been picked to be the first out transwoman as the Assistant for Health at the Department of Health and Human Services. More progress for us who are transgender. Quoted from @Joe Biden. “Let’s be clear: Transgender equality is the civil rights issue of our time. There is no room for compromise when it comes to basic human rights.”
On January 26, Anthony J. Blinken was confirmed by the U.S. Senate to be the next Secretary of State. On a bipartisan vote of 78-22. One of the first things he did was to allow U.S. embassies around to the world to fly the rainbow flag during Pride Month. He said the White House is appointing a Special Envoy for the Human Rights of LGBTQ Persons. Finally.
An Executive Order overturned a ban on transgender individuals serving in the military. By letting them serve our country in uniform. Finally. Years ago I had asked my brother, who is a US Marine Corps combat veteran who served in Vietnam, what he thought of gay and trans service members being able to serve openly in the military. His comment was he didn’t care, as long as they would have his back in combat. There are so many qualified trans people out there who now have the ability to serve our country with pride.
Another Executive Order is directing all Federal Agencies to declare anti-LGBTQ discrimination illegal. Branden Cohen, an out gay Wisconsinite, is running President Biden’s social media. More progress for our LGBTQ Community.
I watched then-Mayor Pete Buttigieg in his Senate confirmation hearings. It was so gratifying to see him turn around and introduce his husband Chasten Buttigieg to the members of the committee. I had never seen that happen before. Ever. He is now the first out gay man to be confirmed as Secretary of Transportation, a Cabinet position, by a historic bipartisan vote of 86 to 13.
For the past four years, I cringed in horror as more and more of our LGBTQ rights were erased by the pen of an anti-LGBTQ president. Through Executive Orders and actions. And supported by so many of his constituents and members of Congress. I’m hopeful now that our LGBTQ Community will be protected for the next four years. Isn’t it time that we were treated as equals in the eyes of those who seek to erase our identities? We are all human beings. And we need to be protected as such.
Two weeks down, many more weeks to come. I’ll see what happens next. With a positive attitude. Until next time…sometime in the future…
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