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Friday, December 14, 2007
Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) voted against the Federal Marriage Amendment, which would have defined marriage as only between a man and a woman. He has said that decisions about marriage should be left to the states, but he supports civil unions that give same-sex couples the same benefits as married couples.
Obama has said that he would repeal all sections of the Defense of Marriage Act, which set a federal definition of marriage as between one man and one woman and said that states don't have to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states. Obama did not vote on DOMA in 1996, as he was not in Congress yet.
Obama has supported the Matthew Shepard Act, federal legislation that would expand hate crime protections to the gay and transgender communities. Obama supports extending the Employee Non-Discrimination Act to include sexual orientation and gender identity.
Obama supports the repeal of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell.' In a statement to the Human Rights Campaign, Obama said, "We had an opportunity to be leaders on the World stage in eliminating
discrimination against gay and lesbian service members, to recognize
the patriotism and heroism of the hundreds of thousands of gay and
lesbian citizens who have served our country. Instead, we bowed to fear
and prejudice. We were told that American soldiers weren't ready to
serve next to gay and lesbian comrades. We were told that our airmen,
sailors and Marines would lose their 'unit cohesion' if we implemented
a policy of equality. And so, rather than embracing leadership and
principle, we embraced Don't Ask, Don't Tell — a policy that is
antithetical to the values of honor and integrity that our military
holds most dear."
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