WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md.), issued the following statement in recognition of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Pride Month:
“This has been a watershed time for equality for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Americans, indeed for all Americans. It’s been almost a year since the United States Supreme Court struck down portions of the Defense of Marriage Act and blocked enforcement of Proposition 8 in California, allowing loving families the federal legal recognition they rightly deserved. Maryland is now one of 20 states – plus the District of Columbia – that has legally recognized marriage equality as the law of the land. I expect that very soon LGBT Americans in more than a majority of states will have the same rights. The U.S. Senate also passed the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), moving us closer to a time when LGBT Americans nationwide can no longer be fired for simply being themselves.
“Marylanders also set a national example with passage of the Fairness for All Marylanders Act that was signed by Governor O’Malley recently. This new law will protect transgendered Marylanders from the kind of labor, housing, public accommodation, and employment discrimination no American should ever endure.
“I am proud of the progress we, as a nation, have made toward greater equality and protection of civil rights for all Americans, but I refuse to be satisfied. I join Allies of the LGBT community across the country in redoubling our efforts to move towards America in which all Americans are treated with the same dignity no matter who they love or how they identify.
“Finally, as Baltimore and communities across the country celebrate LGBT Pride Month, I would like to express a deep sense of solidarity for members of LGBT communities abroad. Far too often in the past year we have seen unabashed ignorance guide foreign governments to pass laws that codifying hate and discrimination. This behavior is unacceptable and I will continue to speak out against such actions wherever they arise. In the Senate, I’m a proud cosponsor of The International Human Rights Defense Act, which affirms LGBT rights as a foreign policy priority for the United States. Our country must lead by example as a defender of human rights and the rule of law.”
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