Hillary Clinton publicly announced her stance on gay rights today in a video released by the Human Rights Campaign (HRC). She states that a little over a year ago in Geneva, she told the nations that "gay rights are human rights and that human rights are gay rights, and that the United States would be a leader in defending those rights."
Clinton stated that being able to bring the message of equality to leaders around the world made her proud to bring the values of the United States to the rest of the world, and it also made her think deeply about "who we are and the values we represent to the world."
With her four years as Secretary of State over, Clinton wishes to share what she has learned with us. She believes that for America to continue to be a world leader, there is work to be done here at home. We need to work together here at home to make a more perfect union. LGBT Americans are "...full and equal citizens and deserve the rights of citizenship. That includes marriage. ...I support it personally and as a matter policy of law."
Clinton defends her view as one that has been shaped over time by people she has known and loved, by what she has experienced around the world, by her devotion to law and human rights, and by the guiding principals of her faith. Marriage is a fundamental building block of our society, she states, and to deny that opportunity to our sons and daughters is to deny them the chance to live up to their own God-given potential.
She acknowledged the speed at which support has already come, but that there is still much more to be done in order to make our country freer and fairer and to continue to inspire the faith the world puts in our leadership.
This statement from Hillary Clinton comes just 11 days after her husband's statement regarding the need to overturn DOMA.
View the full video of Hillary Clinton's speech and read more about the HRC here.
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