Victory Fund welcomes Michelle Obama at LGBT Delegate Lunch

Wed, Aug 27th 2008, 10:05

 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Denis Dison (202) 842-7308, denis.dison@victoryfund.org

On Aug. 26, the Victory Fund co-hosted the LGBT Delegates Lunch with the Human Rights Campaign and Reps. Barney Frank and Tammy Baldwin. About 700 delegates, elected officials (including more than 30 members of Congress), donors, movement leaders, media and bloggers crowded into a ballroom at the Sheraton Hotel to honor the more than 270 openly LGBT delegates at the convention.

The highlight of the lunch was an appearance by Michelle Obama, who spoke directly to the LGBT community about the promise of equality and how we must live up to that promise in America.

"It's been 5 years since Lawrence v. Texas and 39 years since Stonewall, but still we've got work to do before we achieve equality in the LGBT community," she said.

 

 

Victory Fund President Chuck Wolfe also addressed the audience at the luncheon, affirming the Democratic Party’s commitment to a candidate who will fight for LGBT Americans. Wolfe said:

“This week, the Democratic Party stands united behind a Presidential candidate who has broken through barriers and demonstrated that diversity and understanding make our democracy stronger. A candidate who will speak truth about struggles of LGBT Americans - not just in front of us but in front of America.

“This week we are coming together to play our part in choosing the next leader of our country. But the truth is the important work of choosing our nation’s leaders continues long after Election Day. Throughout the course of a presidential administration, important executive decisions are made that affect each of our lives and the President himself does not always make them. Many crucial decisions are made by those he will appoint to the thousands of executive branch offices he controls. That is why our community is organizing to ensure that LGBT Americans are not only heard by the executive, but that they are actually part of the executive branch.”

Read the full text of his speech at the Bilerico Project.