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Obama for America

"President Obama and the Fight for LGBT Rights" +
  5:09 web video from May 23, 2012.

[Cheers] [Music] Obama (from 2008 campaign): When I am president of the United States, gays and lesbians will have somebody who will fight for equal rights for them because they are our brothers and they are our sisters.

Jane Lynch (voiceover): In 2008 our country elected a leader who not only acknowledged the LGBT community but who embraced it.

Obama (clip from HRC speech): I'm here with you in that fight...

Jane Lynch (voiceover): He counted us as friends.

Obama (clip from HRC speech): I held some bilateral talks with your leader, Lady Gaga...she was wearing 16-inch heels.

Jane Lynch (voiceover): We elected a man who understood our struggles....

Obama (WH.gov): I was shocked and saddened by the deaths of several young people who were bullied and taunted for being gay...

Jane Lynch (voiceover): ...and has pushed the nation forward towards equality.

Obama (ABC clip): It is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same-sex couples should be able to get married.

Obama interview: I don't think there's been a single moment in which LGBT issues became important to me; I think it's an accumulation of a lifetime, of friends and family, people I've gotten to know who have helped me understand how the fight for LGBT rights is consistent with that most important part of America's character, which is to constantly expand opportunity and fairness to everybody.

We've seen a profound cultural shift just in the last decade partly because folks are family now.  This isn't a matter of strangers; these are people we love, people we care about.

Since I came to Washington, first as a Senator and ultimately as President, meeting people like Judy Shepard and not only hearing the heartbreaking tragedy of Matthew, but also the strength and determination she brought to making sure that never happens to young people anywhere in the country again.  All the men and women in uniform who I've had a?the chance to meet, who have served our country with such devotion, having to hide who they are in order to keep in uniform.  Those stories made me passionate about this issue.

Jane Lynch (voiceover): That passion drove him to make more significant advances for LGBT Americans than any other president who came before him.

Female News Anchor 1: Gay rights are hailing it as a big victory.  President Obama ordered any hospital that gets federal funding to give same-sex couples visitation and consultation rights.

Female News Anchor 2: President Obama getting ready to grant some benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees...

Female News Anchor 3: President Obama will sign a measure making it a federal crime to assault someone because of sexual orientation or gender identity.

Obama (clip from event): No one in America should ever be afraid to walk down the holding the hands of the person they love...

Susan Wheeler (news clip): This is a triumph for not just members of the gay community, but for us as a civilization.

Jane Lynch (voiceover): He appointed more openly LGBT people to his administration and confirmed more LGBT federal judges than any previous administration, and he knocked down a longstanding, discriminatory policy within the U.S. military.

Obama interview: One of my proudest moments was when we were able to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."  It was not an easy process.  There were some who doubted whether we'd ever get it done.

Obama (clip from signing): This is done. [applause]

Obama interview: That day that we signed it was an emotional day.  And to see not just folks who were active in the military, but to see veterans, some of them from the Vietnam War or the Gulf War, seeing the tears on their faces and understanding what it meant to them to be acknowledged was one of the most satisfying moments of my presidency.

Obama (speech at signing): We are not a nation that says don't ask, don't tell.  We are a nation that says out of many we are one. [applause]

Jane Lynch (voiceover): And with that firm belief he became the first sitting president to support marriage equality.

CNN's Wolf Blitzer: ...truly historic and potentially watershed moment as President Obama comes out formally, publicly, enthusaistically in support of gay marriage.

Female News Announcer: No sitting president has ever done what Barack Obama did yesterday.

Man: The president of the United States just said he stands fully with gay and lesbian Americans...

Obama interview: It's part and parcel of my overall belief that all the LGBT couples that I meet across the country, their families, their children, their commitments to each other are as strong and as precious as anybody else's.

...Not only to preserve the gains that we've made over the last three years but to make sure that any discrimination is eliminated.  You're going to need a strong advocate in the White House.  I am that strong advocate.

We're going to continue to lean forward in making sure that whether it's the capacity to adopt, hospital visitation, ending travel bans, making sure that benefits to spouses or partners are recognized at the federal level—we're just going to keep on making sure that the rights of same sex couples are expanded.  And it's not just a matter of head; it's a matter of heart, it's who I am, it's what I care about.

Notes: "Glee" star Jane Lynch narrates this documentary about LGBT rights in America. The video features a candid interview with President Obama, who speaks about the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell, why he supports marriage equality, and what's at stake for the LGBT community in this election.