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Obviously, the 2008 presidential election will be a watershed moment for the diversity of its candidates. However, it might also be the moment when the political movement among gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people comes of age. The Democratic candidates have promised to support GLBT rights in the workplace, hate crimes laws and the repeal of the "Don't ask, don't tell" rules that keep GLBT members of the military in the closet. Even presumptive Republican nominee John McCain chose to appear on Ellen to explain why he opposes same-sex marriage.
Right after a post thanking voters in Puerto Rico for her victory in the island's Democratic primary, Sen. Hillary Clinton's campaign blog has this message commemorating the beginning of GLBT Pride month:
As we begin Gay Pride Month, I join the LGBT community
in celebrating an historic year in which our country continues to make
progress towards the fair and equal treatment of lesbian, gay, bisexual
and transgender Americans. Still, we have so much work to do. I look
forward to working with the LGBT community to make sure that all
Americans in committed relationships have equal benefits and that
nothing stands in the way of loving couples who want to adopt children
in need. We need to expand our federal hate crimes legislation and
pass a fully-inclusive Employment Non-Discrimination Act. And finally,
we need to put an end to the failed policy of Don't Ask, Don't Tell.
Courage, honor, patriotism and sacrifice – the traits that define our
men and women in uniform – have nothing to do with sexual orientation....
Sen. Barack Obama's blog has an announcement of events organized by GLBT Obama supporters, and links to interviews and statements from Obama on GLBT issues. The most interesting is an April, 2008 chat with the prominent gay magazine, The Advocate, in which Obama presented himself as a friend of the GLBT community, but said that as President, he would have to be realistic about what he could do to enact laws that many activists believe are essential to full equality. Here's part of the exchange:
[The Advocate:] I think the underlying fear of the gay community is
that if you get into office, will LGBT folks be
last on the priority list?Obama: I guess my point
would be that the fact that I’m raising issues
accordant to the LGBT community in a general audience
rather than just treating you like a special interest
that is sort of off in its own little box -- that, I
think, is more indicative of my commitment. Because
ultimately what that shows is that I’m not
afraid to advocate on your behalf outside of church,
so to speak. It’s easy to preach to the choir; what I
think is harder is to speak to a broader audience
about why these issues are important to all
Americans....
Like Clinton, Obama supports civil unions, an end to Don't Ask, Don't Tell, and protections against employment discrimination that include transgendered workers. Obama favors the repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act, while Clinton would only repeal portions of it.
While McCain is presenting himself as
