Washington Blade

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In first, GOP compromise on LGBTQ rights expected to win Democratic support

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A Republican compromise bill that seeks a middle ground on LGBTQ rights and religious freedom is set to emerge as the U.S. House is about to vote on the Equality Act — and for the first time with Democratic support — although critics say it would amount to a legalized right to discriminate against LGBTQ people.

Rep. Chris Stewart (R-Utah) is set Friday to reintroduce the Fairness for All Act, legislation he proposed last year as a solution to gridlock on LGBTQ rights at the federal level, with support from major religious groups, like the Church of Latter-day Saints, the Council of Christian Colleges & Universities and the Seventh-Day Adventist Church.

The bill was initially set for introduction on Wednesday, the day before the House vote on the Equality Act sponsored by Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.), but that was pushed back to Friday. A Republican source close to the bill said introduction was delayed to accommodate requests from Democrats who support the need for compromise.

Madison Shupe, a Stewart spokesperson, told the Washington Blade on Wednesday she expects bipartisan support for the Fairness for All Act upon introduction, signaling the legislation would for the first time have Democratic co-sponsors.

“We plan on introducing the Fairness For All Act on Friday,” Shupe said. “We believe we will have bipartisan support by the end of the week.”

Like the Equality Act, the Fairness for All Act would amend all aspects of federal civil rights law to expand the prohibition on discrimination against LGBTQ people in employment, housing, public accommodations, federally funded programs, education, credit and jury service. A Republican source close to the bill said it isn’t expected to have substantive changes in terms of LGBTQ issues, but clarify protections based on race, color, and national origin.

But the two bills, as they have been introduced previously, have key differences. For example, the Equality Act would specify the 1993 Religious Freedom Restoration Act couldn’t be raised as a defense in court against allegations of illegal anti-LGBTQ discrimination, but the Fairness for All Act would not.

Additionally, the Fairness for All Act would provide an exemption under Title II of the Civil Rights Act to allow stores, shopping centers or online retailers to refuse service to LGBTQ people if they have 15 or fewer employees, but the Equality Act provides no such exemption. The Equality Act would clarify transgender people should have access to locker rooms and bathrooms consistent with their gender identity, while the Fairness for All Act implies that but doesn’t spell it out. The Equality Act is silent on whether its ban on sex discrimination would prohibit medical providers from refusing to perform an abortion, the Fairness for All Act specifies it would not.

Parker Molloy, editor at large for Media Matters of America, was among those decrying the Fairness for All Act on Twitter as a backdoor way to enshrine religious carve-outs to civil rights into law.

“In reality, it creates a ‘right to discriminate’ against LGBTQ people,” Molloy tweeted.

(The Washington Blade is preparing a detailed chart on the differences between the Equality Act and the Fairness for All Act, as well as the situation with current law after the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision last year in Bostock v. Clayton County, which found anti-LGBTQ discrimination is an illegal form of sex discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, therefore not only illegal in employment, but under all laws that ban sex discrimination.)

Despite complaints the legislation may not go far enough, the Fairness for All Act – if LGBTQ rights supporters are serious about getting a bill to President Biden’s desk — may be a necessary tool to win sufficient support, or at least incorporating aspects of the legislation into the Equality Act.

Each of three Republicans who co-sponsored the Equality Act in the previous Congress — Reps. John Katko (R-N.Y.) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), and Resident Commissioner Jenniffer González (R-Puerto Rico) — are no longer on the bill. A Republican lobbyist said the two voting members, Katko and Fitzpatrick, would likely vote for the Equality Act when it comes to the floor consistent with their previous votes of support, but the lack of Republican co-sponsors doesn’t bode well for bipartisan support.

That would likely derail the Equality Act in the Senate, where 10 Republican votes would be needed to end a filibuster on the legislation. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) has similarly said she won’t co-sponsor the legislation after having done so in the previous Congress.

Tony Perkins, president of the anti-LGBTQ Family Research Council, crowed in a statement against the Equality Act, which he called “a grave and treasonous threat to our nation’s core values” over the lack of Republican support.

“The fact that no Republicans have co-sponsored it, even those who co-sponsored in the previous Congress, underscores the Democrats’ lurch to the left,” Perkins said. “This is a radical bill that uses the government to control, through coercion, how every American thinks, speaks and acts on issues of human sexuality.”

One Democratic insider said some key LGBTQ leaders are disappointed with the Human Rights Campaign for turning its back, or in some cases openly campaigning against, Republican allies who had sponsored or voted for the Equality Act, including one advocate who called the decision “complete malpractice for our community — they still operate as LGBTQ rights being a partisan issue.”

Lucas Acosta, a spokesperson for the Human Rights Campaign, said the job of the organization “is to remind legislators where their voters stand about real people across our country who continue to have second-class protections.”

“More than two-thirds of Americans support the Equality Act, including a majority of Republicans and an overwhelming majority of young Americans, the future of our nation,” Acosta added. “The Equality Act isn’t beltway politics, it’s about ensuring that LGBTQ children can grow up in a society that values them and affords them the protections they deserve.”

To be sure, LGBTQ rights advocates are also criticizing Republicans for not co-sponsoring the Equality Act as they have in the previous Congress.

Sean Meloy, chair of the PA Dems LGBTQ Caucus, took Fitzpatrick to task for not co-sponsoring the Equality Act as he did in the previous Congress.

“It is unfortunate some who were willing to co-sponsor the Equality Act in 2019 decided not to in 2021,” Meloy said. “It has enabled anti-LGBTQ activists to make the false claim that the legislation is not bipartisan at a time when bipartisanship is critical to its passage in the U.S. Senate.”

No Senate version of the Fairness for All Act is planned for imminent introduction. But such legislation may be the vehicle to win over Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), who signaled he won’t the support the Equality Act over religious liberty concerns, and Collins, who won’t co-sponsor the Equality Act as she did in the previous Congress. Romney has signaled an openness to the Fairness for All Act in recent years.

Annie Clark, a Collins spokesperson, said introducing a new bill is on the Maine Republican’s possible list of options to advance LGBTQ issues.

“Sen. Collins supports ensuring fairness and equal treatment of all Americans, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity, and she is considering all possible options to do so, including introducing her own bill,” Clark said.

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House to vote on the Equality Act next week

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Congress is heading full steam ahead with the Equality Act, legislation to expand LGBTQ civil rights protections President Biden campaigned on signing within his first 100 days in office, with introduction of the bill expected imminently and a House floor vote now scheduled for next week, the Washington Blade has learned.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), who manages the floor proceedings in the House, affirmed in a “Dear Colleague” letter on Tuesday the Equality Act would be one of two pieces of legislation the chamber will take up next week in the aftermath of consideration of the American Rescue Plan to address coronavirus relief.

“Other legislation coming to the floor next week are two bills that passed through the House last Congress: a wilderness package and the Equality Act, which will end legal discrimination against LGBTQ Americans,” Hoyer writes.

Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.) and Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) are set to introduce the Equality Act in their respective chambers of Congress as they have in years past. 

Although the Supreme Court decision last year in Bostock v. Clayton County extended vast protections for LGBTQ people under federal law, securing a prohibition against anti-LGBTQ discrimination in the workplace sought for decades by movement leaders as well as all areas of civil rights law where sex discrimination is prohibited, the Equality Act would take things a step further.

In addition to the explicit declaration that anti-LGBTQ discrimination is a form of sex discrimination in employment, education, housing, jury service and credit, the Equality Act would amend the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex and LGBTQ status in public accommodations and federal programs.

Further, the Equality Act would expand the definition of public accommodations under federal civil rights law to include retail stores, banks, transportation services, and health care services. The legislation would also establish that the Religious Freedom Restoration Act — a 1994 law aimed at protecting religious liberty — can’t be used to enable anti-LGBTQ discrimination.

The Equality Act was the cornerstone of President Biden’s campaign promises to LGBTQ people. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told the Washington Blade at the start of the month Biden “stands by” his campaign promise to sign the legislation within 100 days, but added Congress has to take the initial steps.

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Romney declares opposition to LGBTQ Equality Act

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Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) signaled late Tuesday he would oppose the Equality Act, legislation to expand the prohibition on anti-LGBTQ discrimination under federal law, throwing a massive wrench into plans of the bill’s supporters to guide it into law.

“Sen. Romney believes that strong religious liberty protections are essential to any legislation on this issue, and since those provisions are absent from this particular bill, he is not able to support it,” said Arielle Mueller, a Romney spokesperson, via email to the Washington Blade in response to an inquiry on the Equality Act.

Romney’s office didn’t immediately respond to a follow-up email on whether Romney would be open to negotiations on religious liberty language that could lead him to support the legislation.

The Utah senator’s declared opposition to the Equality Act, which would amend the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to expand the prohibition on discrimination against LGBTQ people, comes shortly after news emerged House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) would hold a vote on the legislation in the U.S. House next week.

Although the Equality Act, sponsored by Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.) in the House and Sen. Jeff Merkeley (D-Ore.) in the Senate, would likely have no trouble passing in the Democratic-controlled House, the Senate is a different story. With the makeup of that chamber a 50-50 party split, support from 10 Republicans would be needed to reach the 60 votes to end a filibuster on the legislation.

LGBTQ rights supporters were counting on Romney to contribute Republican support to get the Equality Act across the finish line. With his vote off the table, it’s hard to see how the legislation’s proponents would be able to find the 10 votes in the Republican caucus to end a filibuster.

President Biden had campaigned on signing the legislation in his first 100 days in office. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said last week Biden “stands by” his promise, but noted Congress has to take some additional steps.

Romney’s opposition to the Equality Act is consistent with remarks he made earlier this month in which he associated himself with Sen. Rand Paul’s (R-Ky.) attack on transgender kids in sports during Education Secretary-designate’s Miguel Cardona’s confirmation. To the condemnation of LGBTQ rights supporters, Paul said transgender participation in sports amounts to allowing boys in girls events and was a “bizarre” idea.

Romney echoed those comments during the same confirmation hearing, saying he would “associate” himself with Paul.

“That’s not something I say very frequently, but he made a very, very good point,” Romney said. ““I’ve got pictures of my eight granddaughters, amongst some grandsons, behind me. They shouldn’t be competing with people who are physiologically in an entirely different category.”

The Equality Act doesn’t explicitly address school sports, but it would affirm discrimination against transgender kids is prohibited in education and federal programs and suggest barring transgender kids from school sports is prohibited. Major sports associations, including the Olympics and the NCAA, have established internal rules based on sex characteristics, such as hormone levels, to govern allowing transgender athletes to compete based in those leagues on their gender identity.

If 10 Republicans aren’t present in the Senate to vote to end a filibuster on the Equality Act, one alternative would be for Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) to junk the legislative proceeding altogether. However, that would require a majority vote and support from the entire Democratic caucus, and Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.), the only out bisexual in Congress, have said they won’t vote to scrap the filibuster. 

The Blade couldn’t reach Sinema or Manchin’s office by press time Tuesday to comment on the Equality Act and whether the senators would reconsider their positions on the filibuster if the legislation is unable to advance in the Senate.

Romney’s opposition to the Equality Act stands in contrast to his statement in 1994 to Log Cabin Republicans, when he challenged the late Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) for his seat representing Massachusetts in the Senate. At the time, Romney said he would not only back the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, legislation to ban anti-gay discrimination in employment, but “if possible broaden [it] to include housing and credit.”  Romney ended up losing in his challenge to Kennedy, much like he lost the 2012 presidential election against then-President Obama.

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Biden administration rescinds abortion global gag rule

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President Biden on Jan. 28 axed the so-called global gag rule, a Reagan-era order that restricts U.S. funding and assistance to overseas organizations that offered abortions.

Also known as the Protecting Life in Global Health Assistance policy, the rule prohibited groups that received public funding from the U.S. to offer abortion services or disclose relevant information related to the practice. This applied in countries where the procedure is legal, as well. 

In the past, the rule restricted reproductive health and did not extend into other health sectors. But under the Trump administration, restrictions were taken a step further and expanded the barriers to all types of global health funding to non-U.S. NGOs. Because many organizations that provide HIV/AIDS resources also offer reproductive health services, LGBTQ people abroad saw limited access to care. The rule did not dictate what can be done with U.S. dollars, but who can receive the funding, said Beirne Roose-Snyder, the director of public policy at the Center for Health and Gender Equity.

Even if the organization used non-U.S. funds to provide restricted services or information, it would violate the policy, said Roose-Snyder. Also, if the foreign group that receives U.S. funds sub-grants funds to another organization that does not receive U.S. funding itself, the latter organization under the Trump expansion must also comply with the rule. 

“The policy poisons the whole foreign organization,” she said. “And it impacts not just what they can do with U.S. money, but it poisons everything they can do with everybody’s money.”

Health organizations abroad had a choice: Take much-needed funds, or bar themselves from providing essential health services, Roose-Snyder said. Nearly $9 billion in funding per year was affected, she said.  

“As the largest global health donor, we wield a lot of power,” she said.       

LGBTQ and HIV/AIDS service organizations have, by-and-large, praised the Biden administration for the removal of the rule. 

“The policy shift will free up millions in U.S. global health funding, enable the US to rejoin the group of countries which champion sexual and reproductive health and rights worldwide, and support life-saving health programs for communities in need,” wrote Jessica Stern, executive director of OutRight Action International, in an emailed statement to the Washington Blade.

Kimberly Frost, co-chair of ILGA North America and the Caribbean, said moving away from the gag rule is a sign the administration is “moving in the right direction.”  

“It is showing its commitment to supporting women in all their diversity to claim their rights; it is creating the conditions to properly fund access to sexual and reproductive health and rights information and services, in a ripple effect that would benefit also the HIV/AIDS response,” she said in an emailed statement. 

Mark Bromley, chair of the Council on Global Equality, said this memorandum will allow HIV/AIDS programs to be more effective.

“Removing the global gag rule actually strengthens our programs, makes them more effective and brings us closer toward our overall goal of turning the page on HIV and AIDS as a global pandemic,” he said.  

The consequences of restrictions 

Inevitable gaps in care due to organizational restrictions were “catastrophic” and “deadly,” Roose-Snyder said. At the time of its reinstatement, there was mass-messaging the gag rule would not disrupt access to healthcare abroad. This is a “fiction,” she said.

“Because if you have a gap in HIV prevention, the harm may be people becoming positive,” she said. “And that’s not a one time harm.” 

The Center for Health and Gender Equity conducted a case study, Prescribing Chaos, on the effects of the gag rule in several countries, including Mozambique. HIV/AIDS and malaria are the top causes of death in the country, and 13.2 percent of Mozambique’s adult population and 200,000 children are living with HIV, according to the study. 

The Mozambican Association for Family Development, or AMODEFA, is one of the largest health organizations in Mozambique, an affiliate of the International Planned Parenthood Federation and long-time recipient of funding from the U.S. Agency for International Development and the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). The organization lost 60 percent of its budget because it could not comply with the rule. Clinics closed, staff was laid off and community advocates providing information about care dwindled as a result. 

Mozambique was not a unique situation, Roose-Snyder said. Many countries lose not only clinical capabilities, but the advocacy and relationship-building side of care, she said.  

Next steps 

Advocacy groups are pushing for legislation to codify the removal of the gag rule to prevent the constant back-and-forth of reinstatement and removal from Democrat and Republican presidents in the future.  

The Global HER Act, led by state Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) several House Democrats was introduced on Jan. 28. This bill would remove the gag rule permanently. It was originally introduced in 2019 by Shaheen and then-U.S. Rep. Nita Lowey (D-NY). 

There have been efforts to codify the global gag rule, as well. 

U.S. Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) sent a budget resolution to the Senate floor on Feb. 3. This resolution was met with immediate opposition from Shaheen.

“The policy in question closes health clinics, decreases care and needlessly puts the lives of women, children and families at risk,” she said on the Senate floor. 

Shaheen added a codification of the global gag rule would be “downright deadly” during the global coronavirus pandemic. 

Roose-Snyder said because of the nature of the care at hand, resources won’t exactly “bounce back.” Clinics that closed due to the restriction will not reopen, and those who lost access to critical care will not “magically” become better. 

But large organizations, such as UNAIDS, are swiftly recognizing the U.S. as a global health resource 

“We look forward to working closely with the new United States Administration to ensure that all women and girls can exercise their human rights and get the sexual and reproductive health information and services they want and need,” UNAIDS Executive Director Winnie Byanyima in a press release. 

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White House holds firm with Fox Radio: ‘Trans rights are human rights’

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White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki held firm Tuesday under questioning from Fox Radio on President Biden’s commitment to transgender rights, asserting under questioning about transgender kids in school sports: “Trans rights are human rights.”


The reporter with Fox Radio asked Psaki about the executive order Biden signed on his first day in office ordering federal agencies to implement the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Bostock v. Clayton County, which determined anti-LGBTQ discrimination is a form sex discrimination.

The executive order, the Fox Radio reporter said, could lead to situations where “trans girls and cis girls…may end up competing against each other” and “lawsuits and some concerns among parents.” 

Psaki, responding to the reporter’s question on whether the administration had guidance to schools, affirmed she’s “familiar with the order.”

When the Fox Radio reporter clarified the inquiry was seeking “a message for local schools officials” on disputes that includes situations where students are competing for college scholarships, Psaki held firm.

“I would just say that the president’s belief is that trans rights and human rights, and that’s why he signed that executive order,” Psaki said. “In terms of the determinations by universities and colleges, I would certainly defer to them.”

The executive order signed explicitly states kids in should be able to go to school without being “denied access to the restroom, the locker room, or school sports.” The Department of Education has yet to issue guidance on this order as it pertains to school sports.

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US to ‘reengage’ with UN Human Rights Council

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Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday announced the U.S. will “reengage” with the U.N. Human Rights Council.

The U.S. in 2018 withdrew from the council, which in recent years has emerged as a vocal champion of LGBTQ rights around the world. 

Then-U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley during a press conference that announced the withdrawal noted countries “with unambiguous and abhorrent human rights records” are members of the council. Haley also accused it having a “chronic bias against” Israel.

Russia, Cuba and Venezuela are among the 47 countries that are currently members of the council.

“The Biden administration has recommitted the United States to a foreign policy centered on democracy, human rights and equality,” said Blinken in a statement the State Department released. “Effective use of multilateral tools is an important element of that vision, and in that regard the president has instructed the Department of State to reengage immediately and robustly with the U.N. Human Rights Council.”

“We recognize that the Human Rights Council is a flawed body, in need of reform to its agenda, membership, and focus, including its disproportionate focus on Israel,” he added. “However, our withdrawal in June 2018 did nothing to encourage meaningful change, but instead created a vacuum of U.S. leadership, which countries with authoritarian agendas have used to their advantage.”

The decision to “reengage” with the council comes days after President Biden issued a memorandum that commits the U.S. to promoting LGBTQ rights abroad. Blinken in his statement notes the council’s efforts to expand LGBTQ rights around the world.

“When it works well, the Human Rights Council shines a spotlight on countries with the worst human rights records and can serve as an important forum for those fighting injustice and tyranny,” said Blinken. “The council can help to promote fundamental freedoms around the globe, including freedoms of expression, association and assembly, and religion or belief as well as the fundamental rights of women, girls, LGBTQI+ persons, and other marginalized communities. To address the council’s deficiencies and ensure it lives up to its mandate, the United States must be at the table using the full weight of our diplomatic leadership.”

“In the immediate term, the United States will engage with the council as an observer, and in that capacity will have the opportunity to speak in the council, participate in negotiations, and partner with others to introduce resolutions,” he added. “It is our view that the best way to improve the council is to engage with it and its members in a principled fashion. We strongly believe that when the United States engages constructively with the council, in concert with our allies and friends, positive change is within reach.”

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Psaki: Biden ‘stands by’ campaign pledge to sign Equality Act within 100 days

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White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Thursday, amid coronavirus and impeachment crises, President Biden “stands by” his campaign pledge to sign the Equality Act to expand the ban on anti-LGBTQ discrimination under the law within 100 days — although she indicated Congress has to take initial steps with the legislation.


“He stands by it,” Psaki said, responding to a question during the White House news briefing from the Washington Blade. “I would say that there’s some actions that need to be taken by Congress, of course.” 

Psaki half-jokingly pointed out the Biden administration started days ago, 15 or so, which she implied she leaves plenty of time for Biden to fulfill his campaign promise to the sign the Equality Act within 100 days.

“So we have 85 days to go,” Psaki said.

With Biden making four crises of the economy, coronavirus, climate and racial inequity his top priorities, as well as the forthcoming impeachment trial of former President Trump, fears had persisted in the LGBTQ community Biden wouldn’t be able to fulfill his campaign pledge on the Equality Act. Additionally, 10 Republican votes would be needed for the 60 votes to end a filibuster on the legislation in the Senate.

Psaki, however, said she had no information when asked when Biden would speak out in support of the legislation, which would be key in his role as chief legislator in advancing the Equality Act.

“I think the President has been out speaking out about a range of issues he’s committed to, including many on LGBTQ rights, over the course of the last two weeks of his presidency, and he will continue to be,” Psaki said. “But I don’t have any scheduling updates for you at this point in time.”

A senior Democratic aide told the Blade that Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.) and Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) are looking at the week of Feb. 22 to introduce the Equality Act with a vote expected as early as March.

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Markey, Lowenthal to reintroduce bill requiring US to promote LGBTQ rights abroad

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Two lawmakers on Wednesday announced they will reintroduce a bill that would require U.S. to promote LGBTQ rights abroad through its foreign policy.

California Congressman Alan Lowenthal and U.S. Sen. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) made the announcement about the International Human Rights Defense Act eight days after Secretary of State Antony Blinken was sworn in at the State Department. 

The bill, among other things, would make the position of special U.S. envoy for the promotion of LGBTQ rights abroad in the State Department’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor permanent and raise it to an ambassador level position. A press release that Markey and Lowenthal’s offices released on Wednesday also notes the bill would direct the State Department to “devise a global strategy to address discrimination against the LGBTQI community” and to “coordinate with local advocacy groups, governments, multilateral organizations and the private sector, to promote international LGBTQI human rights.”

“The United States must reaffirm its support for the promotion and protection of LGBTQI rights around the world and reengage as a leader on these issues after four years of harmful and discriminatory policies,” said Markey. “This legislation will make it clear that the United States is committed to protecting the human rights of all people, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity. The COVID-19 crisis has put LGBQTI communities all around the world at greater risk and this moment requires a concerted and global effort to recommit to the protection of human rights everywhere.”

State Department criticizes Indonesia caning, Turkey arrests

Former Secretary of State John Kerry in 2015 announced the creation of the envoy position. It has remained unfilled since 2017.

Blinken during his confirmation hearing pledged to raise the envoy to an ambassador level position. Blinken also said he would “repudiate” the Commission for Unalienable Rights — which sought to stress “natural laws and natural rights” — that former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced in 2019.

A State Department spokesperson on Tuesday noted Blinken during his confirmation hearing said he “will appoint an LGBTQI+ envoy,” but stressed there are currently no “details to share regarding the staffing of the special envoy.”

The State Department late last week criticized the public caning of two men in Indonesia’s Aceh province after their neighbors caught them having sex. 

State Department spokesperson Ned Price on Wednesday during his daily press briefing expressed concern over the detention of more than 150 people in Istanbul who were protesting the arrest of four students at the city’s Boğaziçi University after they used pictures of a Pride flag to represent the Kaaba, Islam’s holiest site that is located at the center of Mecca’s Grand Mosque. Media reports indicate Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Monday in a televised speech accused the country’s LGBTQ rights movement of engaging in “vandalism.”

The protests began in January after Erdoğan appointed Melih Bulu, a member of his ruling Justice and Development Party, as the university’s new rector.

“We are concerned by detentions of students and other demonstrators and strongly condemn the anti-LGBTQI rhetoric surrounding the demonstrations,” said Price. “Freedom of expression, even speech that some may find uncomfortable, is a critical component of a vibrant, functioning democracy that must be protected. Peaceful, prosperous and inclusive societies depend on the free flow of information and ideas.” 

“The United States prioritizes the protection of human rights and stands shoulder to shoulder with all those fighting for their fundamental democratic freedoms,” he added.

The Trump administration in 2019 tapped then-U.S. Ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell, who is openly gay, to lead an initiative that encouraged countries to decriminalize consensual same-sex sexual relations. ILGA World Executive Director André du Plessis and other LGBTQ activists with whom the Washington Blade has previously spoken questioned the campaign’s effectiveness.

“Over the last four years, LGBTQI people have been at the forefront of vicious attacks, our basic rights questioned in countries around the world and by the highest office in the US. This is precisely why we need the International Human Rights Defense Act,” said OutRight Action International Executive Director Jessica Stern in the press release that Markey and Lowenthal released. “LGBTQI people cannot be left to suffer because of changes in the White House.  We need the IHRDA to ensure that the U.S. protects and upholds LGBTQI rights as a consistent, integrated and essential foreign policy priority.”

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Gay former Ariz. lawmaker joins Biden administration

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A gay Navajo man who was a member of the Arizona House of Representatives has joined the Biden administration.

Former state Rep. Arlando Teller will serve as the Transportation Department’s deputy assistant secretary for tribal affairs.

Teller was the deputy director of the Navajo Department of Transportation before his election to the Arizona House in 2018. He previously worked at two airports and the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans).

 Teller on Monday officially resigned his seat.

“Elevating indigenous nations’ by the Biden administration only invigorates and encourages me to do more,” Teller told the Washington Blade on Wednesday in a text message. “Representation matters.”

Teller served in the Arizona Legislature with five other openly gay men. He spoke with the Blade on the same day Vice President Harris swore in Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who is the first out person the U.S. Senate has confirmed to a Cabinet-level position.  

“Excited for the newest deputy assistant secretary at (U.S. Department of Transportation), the one and only Mr. Arlando Teller,” tweeted Arizona state Rep. Daniel Hernández, Jr., on Tuesday.

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This is how 300 LGBTQ people in the first Honduran migrant caravan of 2021 live

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100 transgender women are part of the more than 300 LGBT+ Hondurans who have decided to flee their country in a migrant caravan that left from San Pedro Sula early on Jan. 15, 2021. They are all stranded in Chiquimula, Guatemala, as they wait for the authorities of this country to allow them to enter Mexico and onwards to their destination in the United States.

Like the remaining 8,000 members of this first migrant caravan of 2021, the 300 members of the Honduran LGBTQ community have endured long walks through the rain and the cold, uncomfortable trips in the back of cars and trucks, in addition to being clubbed and hit by Honduran and Guatemalan military forces.

Police and military repression

In Aguascalientes, where they were reportedly taken under false pretenses from infiltrators, hundreds of Honduran soldiers and police armed with tanks, rifles and pistols waited for about 1,000 Honduran migrants. The soldiers had orders to shoot at them if they resisted returning to Honduras, according to an observer from an international group.

Meanwhile, in El Florido, the caravan’s actual meeting point on the border between Honduras and Guatemala, Guatemalan military forces responded to the caravan’s intention to pass through that Central American country in order to reach Mexico with sticks and blows.https://www.youtube.com/embed/cwBt5g2a6M0?wmode=transparent&modestbranding=1&autohide=1&showinfo=0&rel=0

Trans men and women, lesbians and gays are fleeing inequality, discrimination and poverty caused by the profound inequality of which diverse populations are victims. LGBTI migrants who are part of this caravan are also fleeing the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the effects of Hurricanes Eta and Iota that ravaged the country in November 2020.

A large part of the LGBTI community in northern Honduras lost their homes and belongings when the passage of the two hurricanes destroyed entire neighborhoods and buried them under tons of mud.

The government of Juan Orlando Hernández has not done all of the work it said it would do in the areas affected by the natural phenomena that devastated the country last year. There are entire neighborhoods that are still buried under mud and where no medical teams or government food aide has reached.

Agencia Presentes accompanied many of the Honduran trans women who undertook the journey with the first migrant caravan of the year.

Transphobia in the caravan

Groups of LGBTI+ people, especially trans women and gay men who have a feminine gender expression, are physically harassed during the caravan’s journey as Agencia Presentes, which accompanied the 8,000 migrants to the border of Honduras and Guatemala, saw.

An example of mistreatment and discrimination against LGBTI+ groups in the migrant caravan is the case of Fabiola, 20, who traveled from Tegucigalpa to flee discrimination and transphobia.

During her journey, a man demonstrated his strength by hitting Fabiola “to remove her from the men’s line.” Presentes observed a series of verbal insults and harassment against trans women by people who used words such as “faggots,” “idiots” and “assholes,” among others.

(Photo by Agencia Presentes)
https://youtube.com/watch?v=EqWNSxhOXgk%3Fwmode%3Dtransparent%26modestbranding%3D1%26autohide%3D1%26showinfo%3D0%26rel%3D0

Although it is the second time she has traveled, Fabiola this time hopes she will be able to cross the border, travel through Mexico and arrive safely in the U.S.

The trans women walked hundreds of kilometers to reach the border. They were exhausted and their feet were sore. They preferred to walk on foot rather than return to the back of cars or pick-up trucks because they face more danger and harassment if they climb back into the cars. In the case of getting into a pick-up truck, they never do it alone. They do it in a group to avoid as much discrimination and ridicule as possible.

Many of the trans women did not bring any money with them for the trip, so some of them were left behind along the way. They hoped to obtain some resources to continue the trip.

“We have suffered discrimination. We live in the department of Colón and they don’t accept us for who we are, they look at us like a phenomenon,” Salomé, a trans woman from Honduras’ Atlantic coast, tells Presentes.

(Photo by Agencia Presentes)

“When you go to ask for support, what they do is discriminate against us. After the pandemic, sex work collapsed and we have fewer and fewer resources for daily subsistence,” said a trans woman from the municipality of Villanueva who did not want to be identified.

Gissele fled Valle in the department of Nacaome with a group of gay men. It is not the first time that she has done it, but she has faith that this time she will make it to the United States. She hopes to get papers that legally certify her as a woman. “They discriminate against us, they mock us and we don’t have work,” she lamented.

(Photo by Agencia Presentes)

Danny, 19, escaped from his house because he could not be who he is. His mother does not yet know that he is heading to the United States or that he is facing a series of challenges in Guatemala to reach Mexico. That doesn’t matter to Danny, who lives in Santa Bárbara, one of the departments with the highest rates of sexual abuse and discrimination against adolescents and young people.

Honduras is one of the worst countries to be an LGBTIQ+ person. The government headed for the last eight years by Juan Orlando Hernández has blocked a gender identity law in the National Congress. The Supreme Court of Justice, in addition, has not ruled that same-sex couples can enter into civil unions, despite the work of organizations such as Cattrachas, Somos CDC, Kukulkán and OPRUCE, among others.

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