National March for Equality ( Eng. National Equality March - lit. National Equality March ) - a major political rally that took place on October 11, 2009 in Washington , DC . Participants in the march opposed harassment and discrimination against lesbian , gay , bisexual, and transgender ( LGBT ) people in matters governed by civil law in all 50 US states and the District of Columbia. [1] The march was organized by David Mixner , a well-known writer and human rights activist, and Clive Jones , a political activist. [2] The march has become the largest LGBT political rally in the United States since the last National LGBT March in March 2000 [3] .
The march coincided with other events held by the NCOD (National Coming Out Day) in memory of the eleventh anniversary of the murder of an American student at the University of Wyoming, Matthew Shepard , a victim of a homosexual crime that became a symbol of the fight against homophobia , violence and prejudice against sexual minorities.
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Barack Obama Speech
On the eve of the march, US President Barack Obama addressed members of the Human Rights Campaign (HRC ), one of the largest LGBT organizations in the United States, which aims to protect the rights of lesbians, homosexuals, bisexuals, and transgenders. This was the second time in history since Bill Clinton addressed HRC members in 1997 . The speech was broadcast on CNN and C-SPAN . [four]
In this speech, Obama touched on the problems of LGBT equality, condemned hate crimes, noted the significant difficulties in promoting public awareness of equal treatment of gay marriages, and HIV. The main point of the speech was the president’s promise to end the law prohibiting military service for LGBT people who do not hide their sexual orientation [5] .
March Day
Hundreds of thousands of marchers gathered between the White House and the Capitol , demanding that President Barack Obama keep his promise on the eve of his promise, allow gays to openly serve in the US Army, and put an end to discrimination against LGBT people on this issue. Significant indignation was also caused by the adoption of the 8th amendment to the California Constitution, which establishes the legality of marriages only between men and women. This has become just one of many elements of the ongoing long-standing litigation of the LGBT community for their rights in California.
According to media estimates, the number of protesters was at least 200 thousand people, although the march was less massive than the previous marches of 1979, 1987, 1993 and 2000, which, according to various estimates, gathered at least 500 thousand people. In total, $ 156,000 was spent on organizing the march, although as a result, significantly more funds were raised, about $ 260,000 [6] . The main difference between the march was the significant use of social networks to coordinate actions and attract new participants, which significantly accelerated the preparation of the rally [7] .
The previous march of 2000.
The boy tells us that he loves his same-sex parents.
Activists on the background of the White House.
“I demand equal rights.”
Notes
- ↑ National Equality March - Our Single Demand . Equality Across America. Date of treatment August 4, 2011. Archived on August 16, 2012.
- ↑ Cleve Jones Joins Call for National LGBT March on Washington DC
- ↑ New group wants march on DC . Bay Area Reporter. Date of treatment August 4, 2011. Archived on August 16, 2012.
- ↑ House OKs Matthew Shepard Act to protect gays , Los Angeles Times , October 8, 2009
- ↑ Obama Long On Promises, Short On Specifics , The Advocate , October 10
- ↑ The Finances Behind the National Equality March ". The Bilerico Project The Bilerico Project. Retrieved June 16, 2010
- ↑ March 2.0: Success of the National Equality March relied on social media tools Archived July 14, 2011 to Wayback Machine Media Bullseye. Retrieved 2010-04-29