[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 109 (Thursday, June 6, 2013)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 33957-33958]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-13542]
Presidential Documents
Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 109 / Thursday, June 6, 2013 /
Presidential Documents
[[Page 33957]]
Proclamation 8989 of May 31, 2013
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride
Month, 2013
By the President of the United States of America
A Proclamation
For more than two centuries, our Nation has struggled
to transform the ideals of liberty and equality from
founding promise into lasting reality. Lesbian, gay,
bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) Americans and their
allies have been hard at work on the next great chapter
of that history--from the patrons of The Stonewall Inn
who sparked a movement to service members who can
finally be honest about who they love to brave young
people who come out and speak out every day.
This year, we celebrate LGBT Pride Month at a moment of
great hope and progress, recognizing that more needs to
be done. Support for LGBT equality is growing, led by a
generation which understands that, in the words of Dr.
Martin Luther King, Jr., ``injustice anywhere is a
threat to justice everywhere.'' In the past year, for
the first time, voters in multiple States affirmed
marriage equality for same-sex couples. State and local
governments have taken important steps to provide much-
needed protections for transgender Americans.
My Administration is a proud partner in the journey
toward LGBT equality. We extended hate crimes
protections to include attacks based on sexual
orientation or gender identity and repealed ``Don't
Ask, Don't Tell.'' We lifted the HIV entry ban and
ensured hospital visitation rights for LGBT patients.
Together, we have investigated and addressed pervasive
bullying faced by LGBT students, prohibited
discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender
identity in Federal housing, and extended benefits for
same-sex domestic partners. Earlier this year, I signed
a reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act
(VAWA) that prohibits discrimination on the basis of
sexual orientation or gender identity in the
implementation of any VAWA-funded program. And because
LGBT rights are human rights, my Administration is
implementing the first-ever Federal strategy to advance
equality for LGBT people around the world.
We have witnessed real and lasting change, but our work
is not complete. I continue to support a fully
inclusive Employment Non-Discrimination Act, as well as
the Respect for Marriage Act. My Administration
continues to implement the Affordable Care Act, which
beginning in 2014, prohibits insurers from denying
coverage to consumers based on their sexual orientation
or gender identity, as well as the National HIV/AIDS
Strategy, which addresses the disparate impact of the
HIV epidemic among certain LGBT sub-communities. We
have a long way to go, but if we continue on this path
together, I am confident that one day soon, from coast
to coast, all of our young people will look to the
future with the same sense of promise and possibility.
I am confident because I have seen the talent, passion,
and commitment of LGBT advocates and their allies, and
I know that when voices are joined in common purpose,
they cannot be stopped.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the
United States of America, by virtue of the authority
vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the
United States, do hereby proclaim June 2013 as Lesbian,
Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month. I call upon
the people of
[[Page 33958]]
the United States to eliminate prejudice everywhere it
exists, and to celebrate the great diversity of the
American people.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
thirty-first day of May, in the year of our Lord two
thousand thirteen, and of the Independence of the
United States of America the two hundred and thirty-
seventh.
(Presidential Sig.)
[FR Doc. 2013-13542
Filed 6-5-13; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3295-F3