President proclaims June as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride Month

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month, 2014

By The President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

As progress spreads from State to State, as justice is  delivered in the courtroom, and as more of our fellow Americans  are treated with dignity and respect -- our Nation becomes not  only more accepting, but more equal as well. During Lesbian,  Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Pride Month, we celebrate  victories that have affirmed freedom and fairness, and we  recommit ourselves to completing the work that remains.

Last year, supporters of equality celebrated the Supreme  Court's decision to strike down a key provision of the Defense  of Marriage Act, a ruling which, at long last, gave loving,  committed families the respect and legal protections they  deserve. In keeping with this decision, my Administration  is extending family and spousal benefits -- from immigration  benefits to military family benefits -- to legally married same-sex couples.

My Administration proudly stands alongside all those who  fight for LGBT rights. Here at home, we have strengthened laws  against violence toward LGBT Americans, taken action to prevent  bullying and harassment, and prohibited discrimination in  housing and hospitals. Despite this progress, LGBT workers  in too many States can be fired just because of their sexual  orientation or gender identity; I continue to call on the  Congress to correct this injustice by passing the Employment  Non-Discrimination Act. And in the years ahead, we will remain  dedicated to addressing health disparities within the LGBT  community by implementing the Affordable Care Act and the National HIV/AIDS Strategy -- which focuses on improving care  while decreasing HIV transmission rates among communities  most at risk.

Our commitment to advancing equality for the LGBT  community extends far beyond our borders. In many places  around the globe, LGBT people face persecution, arrest, or  even state-sponsored execution. This is unacceptable. The  United States calls on every nation to join us in defending  the universal human rights of our LGBT brothers and sisters.

This month, as we mark 45 years since the patrons of the  Stonewall Inn defied an unjust policy and awakened a nascent  movement, let us honor every brave leader who stood up, sat in,  and came out, as well as the allies who supported them along the way. Following their example, let each of us speak for  tolerance, justice, and dignity -- because if hearts and minds  continue to change over time, laws will too.

Now, therefore, I, Barack Obama, President of the  United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested  in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States,  do hereby proclaim June 2014 as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and  Transgender Pride Month. I call upon the people of the  United States to eliminate prejudice everywhere it exists,  and to celebrate the great diversity of the American people.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this  thirtieth day of May, in the year of our Lord  two thousand fourteen, and of the Independence of the  United States of America the two hundred and thirty-eighth.

Barack Obama

Proclamation by the President of the United States

The Gayly – June 12, 2014 @ 11am