VIDEO: Hillary Clinton Endorses Gay Marriage, Is Love of My Young Life

Carmen’s Team Pick:

In case her consistent work for gay families and Americans and outspoken views toward worldwide LGBT equality didn’t tip you off, Hillary Clinton supports gay marriage – and she’s coming out on the right side of history in a nearly six-minute video for the HRC.

“I believe America is at its best when we champion the freedom and dignity of every human being,” Clinton says in the ad. “That’s who we are. It’s in our DNA.” She also harkens back to her days in the Obama administration, making light of a reminder that she declared “gay rights are human rights” in Geneva in a historical speech last summer and talking about a conversation she had with a young activist in Tunisia who saw America as “an example to the world.”

“LGBT Americans are our colleagues, our teachers, our soldiers, our friends, our loved ones, and they are full and equal citizens and deserve the rights of citizenship,’’ Clinton says at the video’s halfway point. “That includes marriage.”

The endorsement comes on the heels of Mr. Hillary Clinton’s statement on the constitutionality of DOMA last week, which raised some eyebrows. Clinton’s decision to appear in the HRC video did as well, particularly among the strange breed of political reporters unable to back off of the “Hillary Running in 2016” beat. But regardless of Clinton’s political aspirations, this wonky one-sided conversation with her about gay marriage is guaranteed to be good for your brain.

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Carmen

Carmen spent six years at Autostraddle, ultimately serving as Straddleverse Director, Feminism Editor and Social Media Co-Director. She is now the Consulting Digital Editor at Ms. and writes regularly for DAME, the Women’s Media Center, the National Women’s History Museum and other prominent feminist platforms; her work has also been published in print and online by outlets like BuzzFeed, Bitch, Bust, CityLab, ElixHER, Feministing, Feminist Formations, GirlBoss, GrokNation, MEL, Mic and SIGNS, and she is a co-founder of Argot Magazine. You can find Carmen on Twitter, Instagram and Tumblr or in the drive-thru line at the nearest In-N-Out.

Carmen has written 919 articles for us.

18 Comments

  1. I just wish she cared about all families including brown skinned ones instead of lending her support to bombing the fuck out of them.

  2. She’s been so outspoken that I hadn’t realized that she hadn’t specifically endorsed gay marriage before.

    • Wait, what about her hair? I’m sorry, I didn’t know people criticized her for that…?

      • Stupid people say her hair is flat, it’s boring, she doesn’t do anything to it, she should style it more, it makes her look old, blah blah blah. But of course, nobody cares if men look bad/old/boring. But apparently, as a woman, she’s supposed to “spend more time” on her appearance.

  3. I guess queers are to be happy for all the support that is coming for gay marriage, but it pisses me off that none of these supporters did it in 2004 and 2008 when I am convinced most of them supported gay marriage but wouldn’t say so publicly.

    In 2004 in particular, Gay marriage was a huge wedge issue. Republicans DROVE voters to the polls using gay marriage and what would have happened if Cheney had stood up against it? Both Clintons? Obama?

    So, yeah, I welcome the support. And I will try to just do that – welcome it – but sometimes, if I think too much, I get annoyed.

    • I agree Josie… her having the bravery to come out for same sex marriage in 2008 (as Dennis Kucinich did) would have been perfect. She didn’t do it despite being asked for clarification many times, nor did she ever mention trans people when talking about ‘gay rights’ until very recently. She was also on the Board of Directors of WalMart for several years. While it can be said good for her for being the only woman on that board at the time, it could also be said she was, in some way, joining an evil empire. Yes, I get she was Secretary of State and had to focus on foreign affairs and not contradict the President… but where was all this in 2007-2008 when she could have clearly differentiated herself from Barack Obama on same-sex marriage and shown herself as a true ally and advocate?

      • America definitely was not as friendly toward the idea of LGBT or gay marriage in 2007-2008 and coming out to support them could have been a much bigger risk than a pay off. Politicians still have to get re-elected in order to put forth the changes they or we want to see. If they can’t even get elected, then nothing will ever happen. It is frustrating, but you must think of the the context of time and situation

        • E, that can be said at any time. But the fact was, both Kucinich and Ralph Nader (and I’m a democrat, and didn’t vote for him) supported same sex marriage. While I get the supposedly practical slant of what you’re saying, it can lead down some terrible roads… as with Ex-President Clinton whose terms brought horrible legislation like NAFTA, the telecommunications act (which haunts freedom of speech in this country to this day) and DOMA. You can call that realpolitik or you can call it pandering to the lowest common denominator. The fact is, H. Clinton lost a lot of support from her LGBT supporters because she wouldn’t come out in favor of same sex marriage… so where did her practicality get her?

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