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Written by Lisa Neff, Staff writer
Jun 30, 2011
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. – Photo: Courtesy
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, celebrating LGBT Pride on June 27 in a State Department affair, hailed the recent vote to legalize same-sex marriage in New York as historic.
Passage of the legislation “gives such visibility and credibility to everything that so many of you have done over so many years” Clinton said in Washington, addressing an audience that included “a lot of familiar faces of people who have been on the frontlines for many years and have worked so diligently and smartly for the progress that we are seeing.”
The State Department has held an annual Pride celebration each of the three years that Clinton has served as secretary.
During her remarks, Clinton spoke about civil rights, human rights, fairness and equality in the world.
“I’ve always believed that we would make progress because we were on the right side of equality and justice,” Clinton said. “Life is getting better for people in many places, and it will continue to get better thanks to our work. So I ask all of you to look for ways to support those who are on the frontlines of this movement, who are defending themselves and the people they care about with great courage and resilience. This is one of the most urgent and important human rights struggles of all times. It is not easy, but it is so rewarding.”
The secretary spoke about several U.S. initiatives to promote LGBT equality and protect LGBT people in recent years, including in Slovakia, where the U.S. embassy worked with government leaders to protect Pride parade marchers, and in Honduras, where the embassy urged the government to investigate 30 anti-LGBT slayings in 2009 and 2010.
The progress of recent years is cause for celebration, Clinton said, but “we cannot forget how much work lies ahead. Because let’s just face the facts: LGBT people in many places continue to endure threats, harassment, violence – including sexual violence – in public and private. They continue to flee their homes and nations and seek asylum because they are persecuted for being who they are. They continue to be targeted for trying to build public support through Pride activities such as parades.”
Change, she observed, comes with political diplomacy, but also personal disclosure and dialogue.
“What we have long thought is becoming the case, and that is if we can convince people to speak out about their own personal experiences, particularly within their own families, it does begin to change the dialogue,” Clinton said.
