Correct the Record

LGBT RIGHTS ADVOCACY AS SECRETARY OF STATE State Department Fact Sheet: Secretary Clinton Directed The State Department To “Champion A Comprehensive Human Rights Agenda” That Included Protection Of LGBT Human Rights. “Human rights are inalienable and belong to every person, no matter who that person is or whom that person loves. Since January 2009, Secretary Clinton has directed the Department to champion a comprehensive human rights agenda — one that includes the protection of the human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people. The Department uses its full range of diplomatic and development tools to press for the elimination of violence and discrimination against LGBT people worldwide, particularly those forced to flee their homes or countries.” [Correct the Record, Fact Sheet, State Department, 12/6/11] CNN’s Frida Ghitis: Secretary Clinton “Made The Promotion Of Equality For Gay People A Core Value Of U.S. Foreign Policy.” According to the Miami Herald’s world affairs columnist and former CNN producer and correspondent Frida Ghitis, “As Hillary Clinton makes a whirlwind round of appearances in her last days as secretary of state, one groundbreaking aspect of her work deserves a moment in the spotlight: In a bold departure with tradition, Clinton made the promotion of equality for gay people a core value of U.S. foreign policy. That is a transformative change, one that advances the cause of human rights around the world — not just for gays and lesbians, but for everyone.” [Correct the Record, Frida Ghitis, CNN, 2/8/13] Secretary Clinton Declared That “Gay Rights Are Human Rights, And Human Rights Are Gay Rights.” At a speech in recognition of International Human Rights Day in Geneva, Switzerland, Secretary Clinton said: “This weekend, we will celebrate Human Rights Day, the anniversary of one of the great accomplishments of the last century…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.” [Correct the Record, Remarks, State Department, 12/6/11] Sec. Clinton secured a policy change for foreign aid appropriation that would “take into account” a country’s LGBT human rights record. In her book Hard Choices, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton wrote, “Early the next morning I learned that the White House had finally approved a policy change that we had been discussing. From now on, the United States would take into account the LGBT human rights record of a country when appropriating foreign aid. This kind of policy has a real chance of influencing the actions of other governments.” [Hard Choices, pg. 582, 2014] WORKED WITH OTHER NATIONS TO ADVANCE LGBT HUMAN RIGHTS Sec. Clinton launched the Global Equality Fund to support LGBT human rights advocates in partnership with eight countries. According to remarks by State Department Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Acting Assistant Secretary Uzra Zeya, “We regularly engage with and support civil society organizations to ensure our work does no harm and supports long-term change. In December 2011, then- Secretary Clinton launched the Global Equality Fund to support civil society advocates working to strengthen the human rights of LGBT persons. The United States has partnered with eight-like minded