Secretary of State Kerry Issues Statement on Uganda Anti-Gay Law

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE

Office of the Spokesperson

______________________________________________________________________________

For Immediate Release                                                                                         February 24, 2014

STATEMENT BY SECRETARY KERRY

Enactment of Ugandan Anti-Homosexuality Bill

This is a tragic day for Uganda and for all who care about the cause of human rights. Ultimately, the only answer is repeal of this law.

The United States is deeply disappointed in the enactment of the Anti-Homosexuality Bill in Uganda. For the four years since the bill was introduced, we have been crystal clear that it blatantly violates human rights obligations that Uganda’s Human Rights Commission itself has recognized are enshrined in Uganda’s Constitution

Today’s signing threatens a dangerous slide backward in Uganda’s commitment to protecting the human rights of its people and a serious threat to the LGBT community in Uganda. 

We are also deeply concerned about the law’s potential to set back public health efforts in Uganda, including those to address HIV/AIDS, which must be conducted in a non-discriminatory manner in order to be effective.

As President Obama stated, this legislation is not just morally wrong, it complicates a valued relationship.  Now that this law has been enacted, we are beginning an internal review of our relationship with the Government of Uganda to ensure that all dimensions of our engagement, including assistance programs, uphold our anti-discrimination policies and principles and reflect our values.

From Nigeria to Russia and Uganda, we are working globally to promote and protect the human rights of all persons.  The United States will continue to stand against any efforts to marginalize, criminalize, and penalize vulnerable persons in any society.

# # #

QUEER QUOTE: Kerry Condemns Homophobic Comments By The President of The Gambia

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE

Office of the Spokesperson

For Immediate Release                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      February 19, 2014

STATEMENT BY SECRETARY KERRY

Anti-LBGT Rhetoric in The Gambia

The United States is deeply troubled by the hateful rhetoric used by President Jammeh in his National Day speech on February 18.  All people are created equal and should be able to live free from discrimination, and that includes discrimination based on sexual identity and sexual orientation. We call on the Government of The Gambia to protect the human rights of all Gambians, and we encourage the international community to send a clear signal that statements of this nature have no place in the public dialogue and are unacceptable.  

Human rights and fundamental freedoms belong to all individuals. The United States stands by you no matter where you are and no matter who you love.

# # #

U.S. State Dept. Announces LGBT-Inclusive Visa Policies

Secretary of State John Kerry announced on Friday that his Department will accept and process visa applications based on same-sex marriages which were legally performed in the jurisdiction in which they were performed anywhere in the world. This is a huge step forward for LGBT rights and ends one of the most cruel forms of discrimination based on sexual orientation practiced by the federal government caused by the odious Defense of Marriage Act (which is now in the dustbin of history).

"If you are the spouse of a U.S. citizen, your visa application will be treated equally. If you are the spouse of a non-citizen, your visa application will be treated equally. And if you are in a country that doesn’t recognize your same-sex marriage, then your visa application will still be treated equally at every single one of our 222 visa processing centers around the world," Kerry said during an appearance at the U.S. embassy in London.  

The announcement is the latest repercussion following the Supreme Court's June decision striking down Section 3 of the federal Defense of Marriage Act, defining marriage as between a man and a woman.  

"Now, as long as a marriage has been performed in a jurisdiction that recognizes it so that it is legal, then that marriage is valid under U.S. immigration laws, and every married couple will be treated exactly the same, and that is what we believe is appropriate," Kerry added.  

According to Freedom to Marry, sixteen countries permit same-sex marriage — Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Canada, South Africa, Norway, Sweden, Portugal, Iceland, Argentina, Denmark, France, Brazil, New Zealand, Uruguay and Britain — while certain regions of the U.S. and Mexico also allow same-sex couples the right to marry.

This is excellent news!

In Historic 1st, U.S. Senate Has 2 Black Members

In an historic first, there will be two African-American men serving in the United States Senate simultaneously. William 'Mo' Cowan was selected by a fellow African-American, Deval Patrick, the governor of Massachusetts, to serve as an interim replacement for Senator John Kerry who became Secretary of State on Tuesday. Cowan, 43, served as Gov. Patrick's chief of staff until last November, when he stepped down. Cowan will serve until the winner of a June 25th Special Election is certified and he is not expected to be a candidate in that race. Former U.S. Senator Scott Brown (who was defeated by Elizabeth Warren) is expected to run, despite being a Republican in  a very Democratic state. Whoever wins the special election will have to run for re-election to a full 6-year term in 2014.

The other Black man serving as a United States Senator is former U.S. Representative Tim Scott, who was appointed in December 2012 by South Carolina governor Nikki Haley to fill out the remainder of Jim DeMint's term in the Senate.

Cowan will become only the 8th Black person to ever have served as U.S. Senator. Retired Congressman Barney Frank had openly lobbied to be appointed, which would have meant there would have been two openly gay Senators serving simultaneously, but Gov. Patrick chose instead his good friend and longtime close advisor.

Why Elections Matter: Chief Justice Robert's New Yorker Profile

kos over at Daily Kos highlights this key graf from Jeffrey Toobin's profile of Chief Justice John Roberts in the latest New Yorker

After four years on the Court, however, Roberts’s record is not that of a humble moderate but, rather, that of a doctrinaire conservative. The kind of humility that Roberts favors reflects a view that the Court should almost always defer to the existing power relationships in society. In every major case since he became the nation’s seventeenth Chief Justice, Roberts has sided with the prosecution over the defendant, the state over the condemned, the executive branch over the legislative, and the corporate defendant over the individual plaintiff. Even more than Scalia, who has embodied judicial conservatism during a generation of service on the Supreme Court, Roberts has served the interests, and reflected the values, of the contemporary Republican Party.

Thanks, John Kerry! But if we didn't have Bush's second term we probably wouldn't have Obama's first term and Democratic control of the US House and Senate.

But this also highlights why Obam's choice to replace Justice David Souter is so important.

The Difference Between the 2004 and 2008 Elections

Kevin Drum posts the county-by-county red-blue maps from the 2004 and 2008 presidential elections. As he says, if you squint you can tell the difference between a "center-left" and a "center-right" nation. (It's the one on the right)

POLL: Obama Leads in FL, OH, PA

TPM Elelection Central has this report on a Quiinnipiac poll which shows that Barack Obama is leading John McCain in three "swing states" of Florida (27 electoral votes), Pennsylvania (21 electoral votes) and Ohio (20 electoral votes). In 2004, if John Kerry had won Ohio he would have been elected president.

Florida
Obama (D) 47%, McCain (R) 43%
Margin of error: ±2.6%

Ohio
Obama (D) 48%, McCain (R) 42%
Margin of error: ±2.6%

Pennsylvania
Obama (D) 52%, McCain (R) 40%
Margin of error: ±2.5%

This is the first poll to show Obama leading in Florida. If the election were held today, Barack Obama would be elected President. Unfortunately, exactly four years ago, John Kerry was also polling ahead of George W. Bush (and we all know what happened in November 2004!)