Civil Rights Redux; Change we can believe in?

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http://www.pamshouseblend.com/diary/10732/civil-rights-redux-change-we-can-believe-in

UPDATE : Due to bloggers and SLDN questioning the WH on why they removed the LGBT rights stuff in the first place, and now the wording surrounding DADT, they have changed the word from "changing" to "repealing." Good news? Maybe. It is yet to be seen or understood why the wording was changed originally or why the White House has yet to clarify what exactly is going on, other than a standard email they've been sending to everyone about "revamping" the site. According to the SLDN Blog, there should be more on this next week.

Aubrey Sarvis communicated with the White House last night, like others did, to understand what was going on. He also received the standard e-mailed response about the site being revamped, etc. We should have a more complete understanding of what is going on early next week. Stay tuned.


Within moments of the official transfer of power from George Bush to Barack Obama on January 20, 2009 the White House website featured a very promising list of LGBT civil rights.

Well 102 days in it appears things have changed. While the over-all list is still in tact and just summarized into one short paragraph, there's interesting wording on Don't Ask Don't Tell which indicates there's no longer full support for repeal from the President which sort of has my blood boiling, just a little.


Strengthen Anti-Discrimination Laws On January 29, 2009, President Obama signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Restoration Act to ensure that all Americans receive equal pay for equal work. The President is committed to expanding funding for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division to ensure that voting rights are protected and Americans do not suffer from increased discrimination during a time of economic distress. President Obama also continues to support the Employment Non-Discrimination Act and believes that our anti-discrimination employment laws should be expanded to include sexual orientation and gender identity. He supports full civil unions and federal rights for LGBT couples and opposes a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage. He supports changing Don’t Ask Don’t Tell in a sensible way that strengthens our armed forces and our national security, and also believes that we must ensure adoption rights for all couples and individuals, regardless of their sexual orientation.

What exactly is he saying by changing Don't Ask Don't Tell? And why on earth would he remove the strong language about developing a comprehensive national HIV/AIDS strategy? Very troubling indeed. The Original text of the website below the fold.

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