While in Washington on business last week I had the great pleasure of attending a reception in honor of the 20th anniversary of the founding of GLIFAA, which stands for Gays & Lesbians in Foreign Affairs Agencies. Secretary Clinton hosted the event in the historic Ben Franklin Room and delivered a powerful keynote address to attendees from State, other agencies, and NGOs. I reprint below the Secretary’s stirring remarks about the evolution of the Department and the transformative importance of the human rights work we do.

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REMARKS BY HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON
Secretary of State
Benjamin Franklin Room
Washington, DC
November 28, 2012

I’m delighted that Deputy Secretary Tom Nides is here. Tom, who some of you know, who you’ve had a chance to work with him, has been just an extraordinary deputy. Also let me recognize USAID Deputy Administrator Don Steinberg. He’s been an unyielding advocate for the LGBT community at USAID.

We also have a number of ambassadors and deputy chiefs of mission, both past and present, some of whom have literally traveled from the other side of the world to be here. David, I’m talking about you. [DH note: yes, that was me.] And we have Michael Guest with us, our country’s first out ambassador to be confirmed by the Senate and someone who’s remained an outspoken champion for LGBT rights, despite having to endure countless attacks and threats. Michael, why don’t you stand up so that you can be recognized? [Applause.]

Also let me thank the GLIFAA board and members. I just had a chance to meet the board and former presidents. I don’t think I’ve ever been in a room with so many former presidents. [Laughter.] The last count was maybe five. [Laughter.] But it’s really due to their leadership over 20 years that GLIFAA has reached this milestone, and it will be up to all of you and those who come after you to keep the work going for the next 20 and the 20 after that.

Now, it wasn’t really that long ago since this organization was created, but in many ways it was a completely different world. As we heard, in 1992 you could be fired for being gay. Just think about all of the exceptional public servants, the brilliant strategists, the linguists, the experts fired for no reason other than their sexual orientation.

Think of what our country lost because we were unable to take advantage of their hard work, expertise, and experience. And the policy forced people to make terrible choices, to hide who they were from friends and colleagues, to lie or mislead, to give up their dreams of serving their country altogether.

That began to change, in part because of the brave employees here at State, who decided that it was time for the bigotry, the ignorance, the lying, and discrimination to end. The LGBT community deserve the same chance as anyone else to serve. And indeed, as we all know, many had for many years, just without acknowledgment of who they were. So enough was enough, and that’s how GLIFAA was formed. And thank goodness it was.

We’ve come a long way since then, and we have seen milestones along that journey over the last 20 years. I remember that I think on my husband’s first day in office back in ’93, he announced that gays and lesbians working in the Federal Government would receive equal treatment under the Civil Service Reform Act. Two years later, Secretary Warren Christopher made clear those rules would be enforced within the halls of the State Department when he issued a statement that explicitly prohibited discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

Now over the past four years, we’ve built on those and other steps to really acknowledge and welcome LGBT people into the State Department family and other agencies. We’ve extended benefits to same-sex domestic partners of State and USAID employees, Foreign Service officers, personal service contractors, third country nationals at missions overseas.

We’ve institutionalized these changes by creating a classification for same-sex domestic partners in the Foreign Affairs manual. We’ve also made it clear in our Equal Opportunity Employment statement that the Department doesn’t discriminate on the basis of gender identity or expression. We’ve helped to make it easier for transgender Americans to change the gender listed on their passports, because our mission is not only to protect the rights and dignity of our colleagues, but also of the American people we serve. And we’ve taken this message all over the world, including the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, where we worked to pass the first ever UN resolution affirming the human rights of LGBT people.

Together we have worked to make something very simple and right come true. Our people should not have to choose between serving the country they love and sharing a life with the people they love. And I want to say a few words about why this work is so important.

Now, leaders of all kinds will stand in front of audiences like this and tell you that our most important asset is our people. And of course, that’s especially true in diplomacy, where we try to be very diplomatic all the time. But what our success truly depends on is our ability to forge strong relationships and relate to people of all backgrounds. And what that means for me, as your Secretary, is that creating an LGBT-welcoming workplace is not just the right thing to do, it’s also the smart thing to do.

In part, that’s because the nature of diplomacy has changed, and we should and need to keep up. Today we expect our diplomats to build relationships not just with their counterparts in foreign governments, but with people from every continent and every walk of life. And in order to do that, we need a diplomatic corps that is as diverse as the world we work in.

It’s also smart because it makes us better advocates for the values that we hold dear. Because when anyone is persecuted anywhere, and that includes when LGBT people are persecuted or kept from fully participating in their societies, they suffer, but so do we. We’re not only robbed of their talents and ideas, we are diminished, because our commitment to the human rights of all people has to be a continuing obligation and mission of everyone who serves in the Government of the United States.

So this is a mission that I gladly assume. We have to set the example and we have to live up to our own values.

And finally, we are simply more effective when we create an environment that encourages people to bring their whole selves to work, when they don’t have to hide a core part of who they are, when we recognize and reward people for the quality of their work instead of dismissing their contributions because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

So really, I’m here today to say thank you to all of you. Thank you for your courage and resolve, for your willingness to keep going despite the obstacles – and for many of you, there were and are many. Thank you for pushing your government to do what you know was right, not just for yourselves but for all who come after you.

I want to mention one person in particular who was a key part of this fight, Tom Gallagher. I met Tom earlier. Where is Tom? There you are, Tom. Tom joined the Foreign Service in 1965 and in the early 1970s he risked his career when he came out and became the first openly gay Foreign Service officer. He served in the face of criticism and threats, but that did not stop him from serving.

I wanted to take this moment just to recognize him, but also to put into context what this journey has meant for people of Tom’s and my vintage, because I don’t want any of you who are a lot younger ever to take for granted what it took for people like Tom Gallagher to pave the way for all of you. It’s not a moment for us to be nostalgic. It is a moment for us to remember and to know that all of the employees who sacrificed their right to be who they were were really defending your rights and the rights and freedoms of others at home and abroad. And I want to say a special word about why we are working so hard to protect the rights of LGBT people around the world. And Dan Baer, who works on this along with Mike Posner and Maria Otero, have been great champions of standing up for the rights of LGBT communities and individuals.

We have come such a long way in the United States. Tom Gallagher is living proof of that. And think about what it now means to be a member of a community in this country that is finally being recognized and accepted far beyond what anyone could have imagined just 20 years ago.

And remind yourself, as I do every day, what it must be like for a young boy or a young girl in some other part of the world who could literally be killed, and often has been and still will be, who will be shunned, who will be put in danger every day of his or her life.

And so when I gave that speech in Geneva and said that we were going to make this a priority of American foreign policy, I didn’t see it as something special, something that was added on to everything else we do, but something that was integral to who we are and what we stand for.

Those who serve today in the State Department have a new challenge to do everything you can at State and AID and the other foreign affairs agencies to help keep widening that circle of opportunity and acceptance for all those millions of men and women who may never know your name or mine, but who because of our work together will live lives of not only greater safety but integrity.

This is not the end of the story. There’s always more we can do to live our values and tap the talents of our people. It’s going to be an ongoing task for future Secretaries of State and Administrators at AID and for people at every level of our government.

Even as we celebrate 20 years with Ben Franklin looking down at us, I want you to leave this celebration thinking about what more each and every one of you can do – those who are currently serving in our government, those who have served in the past, and those who I hope will decide to serve – to make not only the agencies of our government but our world more just and free for all people.

Thank you very much. [Applause.]

- HRC

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It was powerful, uplifting afternoon, and I was honored to meet several important pioneers including Tom Gallagher and David Buss (GLIFAA’s founder and first president). There is much in the Secretary’s remarks to ponder, not just in Washington but in other capitals around the world. You can access the official transcript here.

I’m signing off now to get to my first meeting of this week. I have a hectic schedule for the next six days before returning to Wellington, so please excuse me if I fall a bit off pace with my posts.

The International Day against Homophobia and Transphobia (IDAHO) is celebrated every May 17th because on that day in 1990 the World Health Organization removed homosexuality from its list of “diseases.” Of course it seems odd that such a step took so long, and in and of itself the delisting has done little or nothing to improve the lives of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons in many places around the world. But progress of any sort is worth noting and leveraging.

Today my colleague Ambassador Susan E. Rice, the U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations, issued a statement on the occasion of IDAHO 2012, which I would like to share:

“On International Day against Homophobia and Transphobia, we celebrate human diversity and rededicate ourselves to a basic but essential truth — that human rights are universal and must be protected. To our lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender friends and relatives around the world: the United States stands with you in your struggle against discrimination. We will continue to do everything we can, in every arena possible, to promote communities and societies in which all people can live safely and love without fear.

“Since 2009, the Obama Administration has taken unprecedented steps at the United Nations to fight discrimination and eliminate barriers to equality for LGBT individuals. Months ago, President Obama outlined a formal policy of international engagement to ensure that our dedication to LGBT human rights does not stop at our national borders, reflecting his belief that ‘no country should deny people their rights because of who they love, which is why we must stand up for the rights of gays and lesbians everywhere.’

“We are proud to lead by example, but the quest for human equality and dignity is not simply an American challenge. Today, we call on all nations and all peoples to join us in ensuring that human rights are universally protected.”

To Ambassador Rice’s words I would only add a special note about young people. Wherever conducted, studies have shown that LGBT youth disproportionately feel unsafe in their schools, are the targets of bullying, and miss classes or social events because they fear ridicule or physical attack. The resulting stress and isolation increase the risk of suicide, mental health problems, and substance abuse. The problem exists everywhere.

To commemorate IDAHO 2012 – and on each calendar day thereafter – let’s consider how silence and inaction, as well as words and actions, impact children and youth around us who are still wrestling with their place in the world. The right message is a simple one. As Oscar Wilde urged, “Be yourself;  everyone else is already taken.”

If you would like more information, check out Rainbow Youth, Wellington Gay Welfare, or one of the other great LGBT support groups here in New Zealand. If you are having a bad day and could use some instant uplift and affirmation, browse through the most recent It Gets Better videos.

I believe I am in public service today because of the following 235-year-old sentence:  “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”

With those words and the sentence that immediately follows them – ”[T]o secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed” – a small band of revolutionaries inverted the world order, cemented human rights at the heart of the American experiment, and created a promising future for legions of folks, including me, who were not born into traditional elites or favored demographics.

The Declaration of Independence in which those words are found did not spring from whole cloth in 1776. The first waves of European settlers to arrive 150 years earlier had been driven from their homes by religious persecution. Ships of Puritans, Quakers, Roman Catholics, and Jews came to find space in which to worship unmolested … free from oppression, enforced orthodoxy, and political and economic reprisals. The new communities they built in America reflected and protected freedoms denied them in their old communities.

As would surprise no thinking person, progress did not occur in a straight line or a consistent manner. As often happens when minorities become majorities, certain of the early settler groups, notably the Puritans, attempted to impose a uniform orthodoxy of their own, expelling, imprisoning, or even executing those who unrepentantly held to contrary beliefs or practices.

Such repressive actions, however, accelerated rather than retarded the expansion of liberty. Roger Williams, a former Puritan leader expelled from Massachusetts, founded the neighboring colony of Rhode Island on the concept of full religious freedom because, as he famously stated, “forced worship stinks in God’s nostrils.” As part of his efforts to generate immigration to the new colony of Pennsylvania, founder William Penn circulated marketing material in Europe that emphasized full religious liberties as well as economic opportunities.

Ripples have washed outward over the centuries since then, sweeping more and more varieties of humans within the ambit of human rights and civil liberties, both at home in the United States and abroad. Progress hasn’t been automatic or easy, whether at home in the United States or abroad. Rather, it has been laborious work, usually vigorously opposed, and subject to controversy and backsliding.

This past week the Obama Administration took additional steps forward along the path of universal human dignity. The White House released a Presidential Memorandum on the human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons. And Secretary of State Hillary Clinton delivered a call to action at the United Nations’ Human Rights Council in Geneva on the occasion of Human Rights Day, which annually commemorates the adoption on 10 December 1948 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

In the Presidential Memorandum, President Obama directed all US agencies operating abroad ”to ensure that US diplomacy and foreign assistance promote and protect the human rights of LGBT persons.” The Memorandum articulates specific steps to be taken, including expanding efforts to eliminate criminalization of homosexuality, protecting LGBT refugees and asylum seekers, creating a fund to support NGOs around the world working on LGBT equality, and requiring federal agencies to report back to the White House on progress in six months.

Secretary Clinton expounded forcefully on those policies, using the occasion of Human Rights Day “to talk about the work we have left to do to protect one group of people whose human rights are still denied in too many parts of the world today,” the sometimes invisible LGBT minority. She addressed in a clear, detailed, powerful, and respectful way the political, cultural, religious, and moral arguments often made to support discrimination – and even excuse violence – against LGBT persons.

In calling on other nations to join in ”a global consensus that recognizes the human rights of LGBT citizens everywhere,” the Secretary emphasized the general lessons that history teaches us about civil rights:

“Progress starts with honest discussion. Now, there are some who say and believe that all gay people are pedophiles, that homosexuality is a disease that can be caught or cured, or that gays recruit others to become gay. Well, these notions are simply not true. They are also unlikely to disappear if those who promote or accept them are dismissed out of hand rather than invited to share their fears and concerns. No one has ever abandoned a belief because he was forced to do so.

“Universal human rights include freedom of expression and freedom of belief, even if our words or beliefs denigrate the humanity of others. Yet, while we are each free to believe whatever we choose, we cannot do whatever we choose, not in a world where we protect the human rights of all. Reaching understanding of these issues takes more than speech. It does take a conversation. In fact, it takes a constellation of conversations in places big and small. And it takes a willingness to see stark differences in belief as a reason to begin the conversation, not to avoid it.”

The Secretary is absolutely right. Candid, respectful conversation is necessary everywhere, including where the current status quo looks comfortable or is considered “sufficient” by those who gain political benefit from preserving degrees of discrimination. Having done better than most does not excuse silence or inaction. Being an imperfect work-in-progress does not remove one’s standing to speak and act. As the Secretary states succinctly,
“[W]hen any part of humanity is sidelined, the rest of us cannot sit on the sidelines.”

A remarkable call to action, the Secretary’s speech is well worth reading or viewing, whatever one’s predisposition on the issues it addresses. No brief summary can do her words justice, and I urge you to take a look when you have a few moments. For now, I’ll leave you with two paragraphs that I found particularly compelling:

“Some have suggested that gay rights and human rights are separate and distinct; but, in fact, they are one and the same. Now, of course, 60 years ago, the governments that drafted and passed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights were not thinking about how it applied to the LGBT community. They also weren’t thinking about how it applied to indigenous people or children or people with disabilities or other marginalized groups. Yet in the past 60 years, we have come to recognize that members of these groups are entitled to the full measure of dignity and rights, because, like all people, they share a common humanity.

“This recognition did not occur all at once. It evolved over time. And as it did, we understood that we were honoring rights that people always had, rather than creating new or special rights for them. Like being a woman, like being a racial, religious, tribal, or ethnic minority, being LGBT does not make you less human. And that is why gay rights are human rights, and human rights are gay rights.”

June has been recognized as LGBT Pride Month for many years in the United States and elsewhere. It was in June 1969 that some believe the modern gay equality movement was born, in what is referred to as the Stonewall Rebellion. The US National Park Service’s “Statement of Significance” for the Stonewall Inn describes what happened:

“In a pattern of raids and harassment of gay establishments, the New York City police raided the Stonewall Inn on the early morning of June 28, 1969. The reaction of the bar’s patrons and of the neighborhood crowd that assembled in the street was not typical of such raids, however.” Instead of quietly dispersing as usual, the crowd resisted.

I commemorated Pride Month this year by sending a “smile” to my many friends in China, as part of the first Northeast China LGBT Pride Month.

Organized by several NGOs, the Northeast China celebration was the largest pride event ever held in China, with 17 different activities in five cities and heavy use of social media.

Inspired by the It Gets Better campaign in the US, the Chinese LGBT community launched its own Tongzhi Ni Hao! (Smile for Gays) campaign at douban.com.

Tongzhi Ni Hao! encouraged folks to post online photographs of themselves holding up signs supportive of LGBT equality.

Currently, there are more than 1,700 postings on the website. The photos were tweeted and retweeted extensively and have reached more than 400,000 people.

The message that I sent translates, “LGBTers: my spouse and I wish you a very happy Pride. Respect who you are, join together, and celebrate what makes you special. We support you.”

The campaign generated a great deal of discussion not only in cyberspace but in realspace. I enjoyed reading many of the online comments. One user stated, “Everyone has their own unique way of living, and who among us is qualified to judge others among us for living in a way that doesn’t disturb anyone? We must unwaveringly promote consciousness of equality and human rights.”

Sounds right.