L.G.B.T. Rights Are Human Rights, Obama Declares as He Vows Action at Home and Abroad
U.S. President Barack Obama has affirmed his support for people who belong to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community, saying their rights are human rights.
The President released a statement on Saturday in commemoration of the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia, an event celebrated around the world on May 17.
"We take this opportunity to reaffirm that lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender rights are human rights, to celebrate the dignity of every person, and to underscore that all people deserve to live free from fear, violence, and discrimination, regardless of who they are or whom they love," the President said.
Obama said the U.S. has promoted L.G.B.T. rights overseas through diplomacy and global outreach.
"We work toward this goal every day," he said. "Here at home, we are working to end bias-motivated violence, combat discrimination in the workplace, and address the specific needs of transgender persons. Overseas, I am proud of the steps that the United States has taken to prioritize the protection and promotion of L.G.B.T. rights in our diplomacy and global outreach."
He said fighting for L.G.B.T. rights is still a work in progress.
"There is much more to do, and this fight for equality will not be won in a day. But we will keep working, at home and abroad, and we will keep fighting, for however long it takes until we are all able to live free and equal in dignity and rights," he said.
The White House said the Obama administration has made the advancement of L.G.B.T. rights a foreign policy priority.
It recalled that in December 2011, Obama released a presidential memo on international initiatives to advance the human rights of L.G.B.T. persons that directs departments and agencies to combat criminalization of L.G.B.T. status abroad and protect vulnerable L.G.B.T. refugees or asylum seekers.
The Obama administration has also launched two global funding partnerships: Global Equality Fund and the L.G.B.T. Global Development Partnership, which funded L.G.B.T. civil society activists and organizations.
