Hillary Clinton praises LGBT activists for changing minds – 'including mine'

http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/oct/03/hillary-clinton-lgbt-rights-human-rights-campaign

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Hillary Clinton stood by the gay, lesbian and transgender community in a speech before the nation’s largest LGBT civil rights advocacy group on Saturday, vowing to end any remaining discrimination in the military, workplace or healthcare system if she is elected president.

Related: Can LGBT community's soft spot for Hillary Clinton endure the competition?

The Democratic candidate placed particular emphasis on the plight of transgender individuals and called on the military to allow them to serve openly. Clinton also vowed to upgrade the service records of LGBT troops who were dishonorably discharged under the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law signed by former president Bill Clinton.

“I see the injustices and the dangers that you and your families still face and I’m running for president to end them once and for all,” Clinton told an audience of hundreds at a gathering of the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) in Washington.

She frequently went back to the obstacles facing transgender individuals and urged action against the “growing crisis of violence” they face. At least 19 transgender people have been murdered in the US in 2015 alone, according to data compiled by the HRC.

Vice-President Joe Biden, who is mulling his own run for president, was set to address the group later in the day.

For any chatter of a lack of enthusiasm for Clinton within LGBT circles, the former secretary of state was enthusiastically received on an otherwise dreary Saturday morning – at one point the crowd erupted into chants of “Hillary! Hillary!”

She was introduced by HRC president Chad Griffin, an aide to the Clinton White House, as “a true trailblazer and a real champion for equality”.

The crowd appeared to agree, breaking into thunderous applause when Clinton reaffirmed her commitment to advancing LGBT causes such as the federal Equality Act. The sweeping bill, which is unlikely to move in the Republican-controlled Congress, is aimed at expanding protections for individuals based on sexual orientation and gender identity in employment, housing, public accommodations and education.

“I’ve been fighting alongside you and others for equal rights and I’m just getting warmed up,” Clinton said.

Clinton did not endorse gay marriage until 2013, and as recently as last year supported leaving the matter to the states. It was not until earlier this year, when the supreme court was weighing the legalization of gay marriage nationwide, that Clinton deemed marriage equality a constitutional right.

Clinton nonetheless touted her record advocating for LGBT rights while secretary of state – and, in a brief nod to the evolution of her views on same-sex marriage, thanked the activists before her for “being on the front lines” of a struggle that has rapidly shifted public opinion in recent years.

“You helped change a lot of minds, including mine,” Clinton said.

The Democratic frontrunner drew a stark contrast to her Republican opponents in the 2016 race, noting that each and every GOP candidate for president remained opposed to marriage equality. Some she called out by name, such as the retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson and Texas senator Ted Cruz.

Clinton mocked Carson for blaming the fall of the Roman Empire on marriage equality, and Cruz for once attacking an opponent who participated in a gay pride parade.

“He clearly has no idea what he’s missing,” she said. “They’re so much fun!”

Cruz, like former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, has positioned himself as a staunch defender of religious liberty – the two having gone so far as competing for public attention while embracing Kim Davis, the Kentucky county clerk who was jailed last month for denying marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

Cruz and Huckabee, Clinton said, were “celebrating a county clerk who is breaking the law”.

She also sharply criticized Republican governors for pushing religious freedom laws that would open the door to discrimination against LGBT individuals, and for blocking Obama healthcare law’s Medicaid expansion – thus inflicting harm to those who suffered from HIV and but were unable to afford the medications required for treatment.

“The message is unmistakable: you’re not a real citizen, you’re not wanted here, you’re not welcome,” Clinton said.

As political observers fixate on her poll numbers and the rise of Vermont senator Bernie Sanders, Clinton has focused instead on the choice before the American public in the general election

She did so on Saturday by warning LGBT activists of what was at stake for the country, invoking as she often does on the campaign trail the future of the next generation, including her granddaughter.

Related: Leading same-sex marriage activist heads to Europe after US triumph

“I find myself thinking a lot about the country and the world she’ll grow up in – whether it’ll be safe and healthy and just,” Clinton said. “I want my granddaughter to feel bold and brave and supported enough that she can be who she is, whoever that turns out to be.”

Those in attendance appeared to walk away convinced by Clinton’s pitch, even as they were excited to see Biden – whose endorsement for gay marriage ahead of Barack Obama in 2012 was seen as prompting the president’s own backing.

Carl Kamb, an orthopedic surgeon from Los Angeles said he felt “empowered and emboldened” and was moved to tears by Clinton’s speech.

“I think she gets a lot of criticism that, I don’t think after seeing her speak, really belongs there,” he said. “I was telling my partner that four years ago, people running for president wouldn’t speak openly about LGBT issues. I believe that she’s a champion.”

Carol Cosler, a healthcare professional from Columbus, Ohio, said Clinton had a reputation for being an LGBT advocate “when it wasn’t popular or en vogue”.

“She was in the trenches with us when we were really an underclass group of people,” she said, while adding that the LGBT community was forgiving of Clinton’s late public endorsement of same-sex marriage.

“We have to present things when the world is ready and the timing is there – even Barack Obama has told us that, and we have to trust them,” Cosler said. “You have one time to strike and if everything is not ready for you, then you risk being set back another 15 years.”

Cosler acknowledged that there had been discussion among LGBT activists of whether a Biden candidacy would “fire up the race”.

“Everybody likes Joe Biden. He’s always been a fair-minded person,” she said. Cosler then paused for a moment

“But I’m a Hillary supporter,” she added.