Blinken’s cable also noted that a pride flag outside some embassies - such as the ones in countries that criminalize same-sex activity - could do more harm than good. diplomatic outposts to raise the pride flag, according to a cable obtained by Foreign Policy. In May, Secretary of State Antony Blinken issued authorization for U.S. Embassies in the Middle East, including in Jeddah, Riyadh, Dhahran, Logos, and Islamabad did not respond to The Federalist’s request to know if each respective embassy will hang a pride flag this month. Five countries implement the death penalty for same-sex activity, and the death penalty is a possible punishment in six more.ĭespite the Biden administration’s efforts, none of those nations appear too prideful this month - at least on their flag posts. Saudi Arabia actively executes people accused of same-sex sexual activity, while killings of sexual minorities take place in at least 11 countries. Seventy-one foreign nations criminalize private same-sex sexual activity, and 70 of those countries have a U.S. Department of State’s official message of pride month is: “You are included.” Many nations, however, have decided to forego Biden’s call to wave the flag high. embassy was invited to “fly the Pride Flag or light up their embassies with rainbow colors this month.” Embassy in Nassau on Tuesday said the Bahamas embraced the Biden administration’s “worldwide effort” to “highlight the contributions of LGBTQI+ persons around the world,” and that each U.S.
president to openly embrace a full range of queer rights, including transgender equality.A statement released by the U.S. The Biden administration’s commitment to LGBTQ rights comes as highly anticipated gain for the LGBTQ community. The committee’s findings claimed that queer and trans equality was an issue invented by “politicians and bureaucrats” and referred to marriage equality and reproductive rights as “divisive social and political controversies.”
The committee was tasked with viewing human rights through the lens of “natural law”, which has often been used as code for the exclusion of LGBTQ rights. Related article: President Biden’s New Executive Order Enforces Workplace Equalityĭuring the hearing, Blinken also said he would reject the findings of the “Commission on Unalienable Rights” an advisory committee launched by former Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo. Raising the pride flag is one way to outright show LGBTQ solidarity. “And so, I think the United States playing the role that it should be playing in standing up for and defending the rights of LGBTQI people is something that the department is going to take on and take on immediately. “We’ve seen violence directed against LGBTQI people around the world increase,” Blinken says. In a report from Transrespect Versus Transphobia Worldwide (TvT), 350 transgender people were murdered globally between October 2019 and September 2020, a 6 percent increase from the previous year. in 2020 alone, marking it the highest number since the HRC began tracking anti-trans violence. Blinken believes that filling the position is a matter of “some real urgency” following a surge in violence against LGBTQ people around the world during Trump’s four years in office.Īccording to the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), 44 transgender and gender-nonconforming people were killed in the U.S. Prior to the ban, embassies raised the flag during pride month on the official embassy flagpole.ĭuring the hearing, Blinken also confirmed that he plans to appoint an envoy for the Human Rights of LGBTQ persons, a position created by Barack Obama in 2015 that wasn’t filled during the Trump presidency. Missing from the list was the LGBTQ pride flag, which Esper compared to the confederate flag. In a memo from July 2020, former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper released a list of flags permitted to be displayed at U.S. The Obama administration had issued a blanket of approval for the flags display, but the Trump administration forced embassies to seek permission to fly it on official flagpoles, denying most requests. embassies flying rainbow flags in honor of Pride month. In a confirmation hearing last Tuesday, Blinken confirmed that among other proposals, the Biden administration will reverse the Trump-era bans on U.S. The Biden administration is off to a hopeful start, as Secretary of State nominee, Antony Blinken, has confirmed a recommitment to LGBTQ rights.