Photo: Bill Clinton. Credit: World Economic Forum/flickr.
Former President Bill Clinton will deliver the keynote address at the Human Rights Campaign’s national dinner next month.
“President Bill Clinton is a transformational leader for our nation and the world,” said HRC President Chad Griffin, who served in the press office of the Clinton White House, in a statement. “His ability to build partnerships around the globe and harness the power of human potential is truly remarkable, and we are thrilled he will be returning as our keynote speaker for our national dinner.”
According to HRC, Clinton returns to the annual fundraiser on Oct. 25 after attending HRC’s first national dinner in 1997.
Clinton has worked to restore his LGBT-rights legacy since leaving the White House. The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) defining marriage as between a man and a woman for federal purposes, which Clinton signed in 1996, was partially struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court as unconstitutional in June 2013. Before oral arguments were heard by he high court over DOMA’s constitutionality in March 2013, Clinton penned a column for The Washington Post calling for the law to be struck down.
“As the president who signed the act into law, I have come to believe that DOMA is contrary to those principles and, in fact, incompatible with our Constitution,” he wrote.
Clinton’s administration also approved “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” in 1993 as a compromise with Congress to the full ban on gay servicemembers that existed when Clinton entered the White House. Gay people would be allowed to serve under Clinton’s compromise, but by sharing their sexual orientation they faced discharged. And discharged they were, with more than 14,500 LGB servicemembers fired under the discriminatory ban before it was repealed by Congress and President Barack Obama in 2011.
Clinton’s appearance also comes as speculation continues to swirl around whether his wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, will again run for president in 2016. Hillary Clinton, who announced her support for same-sex marriage in March 2013 in a video statement released by HRC, has also faced questions about her support for marriage equality. During a recent interview with NPR, Clinton defended her decision to only endorse same-sex marriage in March 2013, shortly after leaving her position as secretary of state, and denied that she hid her support for marriage equality for political gain. “When I was ready to say what I said, I said it,” Clinton stated. Most notably, Clinton also said she believes marriage should be left up to the states and expressed her support for state-by-state efforts to secure marriage equality, a position that contradicts the majority of marriage-equality advocates who believe a national resolution must come from the Supreme Court.
It is not yet clear if Hillary Clinton will also attend next month’s event.
If it's Pride Month, it must be time for another conservative boycott -- and this time, the target is Kroger, the grocery superstore chain, under fire for its LGBTQ-inclusive policies and Pride-themed merchandise.
One Million Moms, an offshoot of the anti-LGBTQ American Family Association, regularly campaigns against so-called "indecency" in TV, music, and film -- including violence, profanity, and anything with sexual content. It also froths at the mouth over any positive depictions of LGBTQ people or same-sex couples in media.
Delegates at the Southern Baptist Convention’s national meeting in Dallas have overwhelmingly endorsed a resolution opposing same-sex marriage.
On June 10, more than 10,000 church representatives -- referred to as "messengers" -- voted without debate to approve a measure urging the "overturning of laws and court rulings, including Obergefell v. Hodges, that defy God’s design for marriage and family," according to the Associated Press.
In a clear jab at LGBTQ Pride Month, U.S. Rep. Mary Miller (R-Ill.) introduced a resolution last week to declare June as "Family Month" — a move right-wing outlet The Daily Wire hailed as an effort to "reclaim the first month of summer from LGBTQ ideology."
The American family is under relentless attack from a radical leftist agenda that seeks to erase truth, redefine marriage, and confuse our children," Miller told The Daily Wire.
"By recognizing June as Family Month, we reject the lie of 'Pride' and instead honor God's timeless and perfect design. If we truly want to restore our nation, we must stand united to protect and uphold the foundation upon which it was built — the family."
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