President Obama hosted a reception yesterday at the White House celebrating LGBT Pride month and commemorating the anniversary of the Stonewall riots. Speaking before a crowd of nearly 300 people, Obama spoke at some length on the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), the Matthew Shepard Act and Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.
President Obama’s remarks in full below…
Despite a boycott, protests over the recent DOMA brief and an overall lack of progress on LGBT issues, the 10th annual LGBT Leadership Council fundraiser for the Democratic National Committee raised nearly $1 million yesterday evening, up from the $750k brought in the previous year. While the protestors made their points outside, Vice President Joe Biden gave a speech inside. From the Advocate:
When Vice President Joe Biden took the stage, he told the crowd that he had specifically asked to speak at the event and that his wife, Dr. Jill Biden, had also requested to address a Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network event earlier this month.
“I am not unaware of the controversies swirling around this dinner,” Biden said, “swirling around the speed — or lack thereof — that we’re moving on issues that are of great importance to you and, quite frankly, to me and to the President and to millions of Americans.”
“More importantly , I want thank you for being a critical – critical – voice for keeping the nation focused on the unfinished business of true equality for all of our people; and I know, and this administration knows, that we have so much more to do,” he said. “I promise you, I promise you, with your help we’ll get there in this administration.”
Biden ticked off a list of priorities for the community, starting with receiving a standing ovation for saying with great gusto, “We will repeal the Defense of Marriage Act with your help!” He touched on “don’t ask, don’t tell,” the Domestic Partner Benefits and Obligations Act, employment nondiscrimination, the HIV travel ban and hate crimes.
“It all is for one purpose and that is, securing equality and dignity – equality and dignity – for all Americans,” Biden declared.
DNC Chairman Tim Kaine also spoke at the fundraiser, but was not so well-received.
“He didn’t really seem to recognize what it meant for the people who were in that room to show up,” said LGBT activist Peter Rosenstein, calling his speech “disappointing.”
Rosenstein said he did speak individually with Kaine about making sure that Congress doesn’t interfere with the District of Columbia’s right to determine whether same-sex marriages would be legal and recognized in the city.
“He said he would work with us on that,” Rosenstein said. “But he didn’t run down the litany of issues that the vice president did during his speech – it lacked a real commitment to showing what the DNC is going to do on our issues.”
Video of the protest below, courtesy of The Washington Blade.
Among those who boycotted the event: David Mixner, Richard Socarides, HRC’s Marty Rouse, GLAAD’s Mary Bonauto, Towleroad’s Andy Towle, Hilary Rosen and the Victory Fund’s Chuck Wolfe.
Bay Area photographer Bill Wilson spoke briefly with Michelle Obama at an event he covered in San Francisco yesterday, kicking off the United We Serve program. Wilson, who is gay and recently married to his partner of 22 years by Mayor Gavin Newsom, told the First Lady we need to get rid of DOMA. The exchange via The Petrelis Files below:
Bill Wilson: My husband and I have been together 23 years. We need to get rid of the Defense of Marriage Act.
Michelle Obama: I agree.
Bill Wilson: We need it done now.
Michelle Obama: It will be.
Bill Wilson: I really want to be able to support him.
Michelle Obama: As well you should!
Bill Wilson: We really do want him to succeed.
Michelle Obama: I’ll tell him.
(At this point she leaned over to give me a hug.)
As she stepped away I said, “We were married by the Mayor last year.”
Michelle Obama: Give your husband a hug from me.
I met Bill recently covering the GLAAD Media Awards and am glad he was able to speak to Michelle Obama on behalf of the gay community. Is it possible we have a “fierce advocate” in the White House after all?
In what is perhaps further efforts to placate the LGBT community over the recent DOMA brief controversy, the White House announced it is now considering adding same-sex marriages, unions and partnerships to the the 2010 Census data. From the Wall Street Journal:
The administration has directed the Census Bureau to determine changes needed in tabulation software to allow for same-sex marriage data to be released early in 2011 with other detailed demographic information from the decennial count. The bureau historically hasn’t released same-sex marriage data.
…
The Census Bureau has long collected data on same-sex marriages when people chose to report it. White House officials said the previous administration interpreted the federal Defense of Marriage Act as prohibiting the release of the data. The Obama administration has abandoned that interpretation.
Press Secretary Robert Gibbs addressed the WSJ report at the White House press briefing today and went on to answer a question on DADT.
Is it me is or is there a subtle shift in tone (towards the positive) on how Gibbs handles questions related to LGBT issues?