News
Clinton emails: ‘We should emphasize LGBT human rights’
Former secretary of state responds to Iraq, creation of LGBT liaison
Hillary Clinton called for emphasis of LGBT rights in her State Department emails. Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
Clinton, who’s now pursing the Democratic nomination for president in 2016, expressed the view in response to a 2009 Voice of America report forwarded to her by adviser Cheryl Mills on the alleged murder and torture of gay Iraqi men, many of whom reportedly said they were more secure under the regime of Saddam Hussein.
Clinton responded 11 minutes after Mills sent her the article.
“So sad and terrible,” Clinton writes. “We should ask Chris Hill to raise this w govt. If we ever get Posner confirmed we should emphasize LGBT human rights.”
The Chris Hill to which Clinton is referring is likely the U.S. ambassador to Iraq during the first two years of the Obama administration. Posner is likely Michael Posner, who came to serve in the State Department after his confirmation as assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights and labor.
Clinton’s call for pushing LGBT rights within the State Department is consistent with her stated philosophy that “gay rights are human rights and human rights are gay rights” and her 2011 speech in Geneva in which she highlighted international LGBT rights concerns.
Other emails in the batch unveiled on Tuesday, which span from March to December 2009, demonstrate the hang-wringing on the perceived lack of progress on LGBT issues in the first years of the Obama administration and the potential creation of a State Department official dedicated to LGBT human rights.
The emails reveal that among the individuals forwarding articles to the Clinton State Department on LGBT rights was Richard Socarides, a gay New York-based advocate who advised former President Bill Clinton on gay rights issues.
Socarides told the Washington Blade that as a former White House official he sometimes passed along information and reports he thought would be of interest to the State Department. Sometimes, Socarides said, Clinton’s staff reached out to him with a specific question.
“From what I can tell, these emails are all part of that back-and-forth,” Socarides.
In one email to Mills, Socarides forwards a Gay City News article on anti-LGBT brutality in Iraq and writes, “You guys will have to deal with this at some point if not already.”
In response to the exchange, Socarides expressed satisfaction with how issues related to the rights of LGBT Iraqis were handled, saying it was part of ongoing concern about the country and “raised by our government at many levels and on repeated occasions.”
In another email dated May, 22, 2009, Mills forwards to Clinton an article in the Advocate on a draft letter signaling the State Department’s intention to extend partner benefits to gay Foreign Service officers.
Clinton’s response isn’t revealed, but Mills commentary on the article is simply “Oh my.”
In another December 2009 email in which he forwards a Voice of America article on evangelical leaders spreading anti-gay sentiment in Africa, Socarides recommends the creation of an international LGBT point person.
“There is a lot of appreciation for everything the Dept has done around this so far and I think you could really build on it by putting someone there in charge of international LGBT human right issues,” Socarides said.
Socarides’ email was in turn forwarded to Clinton by Mills, who endorsed the idea, saying, “I think this is a good idea — what do you think?”
Clinton’s initial response was “Mira patel in sp told me she is already starting to do this. Do you want someone in drl.” The rest of Clinton’s response is redacted by the State Department. Mira Patel served at the State Department as an advisor for Clinton after having served on her Senate staff.
The response from Clinton apparently wasn’t adequate for Mills, who responded she “would want someone higher profile” and Patel is likely preparing a “response to incoming rather as an affirmative agenda.”
“Not sure how I got to be the person pushing all things in this area — think from the earlier reports on family benefits but as a general matter — we have a reaction mechanism right how (to others, to me sending emails re Uganda (and now Uganda is doing same kind of anti-gay law)) etc.,” Mills writes. “This would be someone who’s profile would be an affirmative agenda.”
Clinton has a short response to Mills eight minutes later, “Let’s discuss.” The Clinton emails don’t reveal the resolution of this discussion, which may have been taken offline.
In response to the email exchange, Socardies pointed to the appointment of Daniel Baer as deputy assistant secretary in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights & Labor. Part of the portfolio for Baer, who now serves as U.S. ambassador to Organization for Security & Cooperation in Europe, was international LGBT rights issues.
No specific LGBT international affairs official was appointed during Clinton’s tenure, but the State Department named Randy Berry as special envoy for the human rights of LGBTI persons under current Secretary of State John Kerry.
The emails unveiled by the State Department aren’t the last missives expected to be made public. As a result of a Freedom of Information Act request and the direction from Clinton herself, the emails are slated to keep coming on a rolling basis and all 55,000 pages should be public by Jan. 29. Clinton deleted an estimated 32,000 emails on recommendation from her legal team.
Over the course of her tenure at the State Department period, Clinton opposed same-sex marriage. The Blade could find no emails discussing the issue or any potential evolution on her views. Clinton endorsed same-sex marriage after she left the State Department in 2013.
Congress
HRC president campaigns for Chris Pappas in NH
Gay congressman running to succeed retiring U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen
Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson on Sunday campaigned for U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas (D-N.H.) in New Hampshire.
Robinson traveled to Manchester, the state’s largest city, nine days before the Sept. 8 primary that will determine who will vie for retiring U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.)’s seat.
We’re hitting the pavement across New Hampshire to fight for a freer, fairer future for everyone.
Glad to have Human Rights Campaign President @KelleyJRobinson join us for a canvass launch in Manchester today. pic.twitter.com/XWCEaQxy4o
— Chris Pappas (@ChrisPappasNH) August 30, 2026
Former U.S. Sen. John E. Sununu, who represented New Hampshire in the U.S. Senate from 2003-2009, will face off against former U.S. Sen. Scott Brown, who represented Massachusetts in the U.S. Senate from 2010-2013, in the Republican primary.
Karishma Manzur is among the Democrats challenging Pappas.
A poll the University of New Hampshire Survey Center released on Aug. 26 shows Sununu is ahead of Brown. The same survey shows Pappas ahead of Manzur and his other Democratic challengers.
The UNH Survey Center poll shows Sununu ahead of Pappas by a 45-43 percent margin if they were to face off in the general election. The margin of error is +/-2.1 percent.
Pappas would become the first openly gay man elected to the U.S. Senate if he were to win in November.
Delaware
Michael Smith could make history as Delaware’s first LGBTQ treasurer
Promises to defend state from Trump administration
With experience as an economist, legislative staffer, and nonprofit director, Michael Smith is looking to protect Delaware from the Trump administration and become Delaware’s first openly LGBTQ treasurer.
With a master’s degree in economics from the University of Alabama, Smith has worked as an economist at the Progressive Policy Institute, Secretariat Economist, and Cornerstone Research.
“I think my work in economic and financial analysis has given me a lot of experience and know-how about what the treasurer role can and should be,” said Smith.
Smith also worked in the Delaware House Democratic Caucus in Dover, working with state representatives to improve the quality of life of Delawareans.
“I got to see where the rubber meets the road and how we can have policies that positively affect everyday working Delawareans.” said Smith.
In 2024, Smith narrowly lost a race to represent District 21 by 30 votes. He said that this loss gave him the itch to make a positive impact on the community.
Smith also founded and directed Powering Our Future, a nonprofit that promoted clean energy infrastructure throughout New Castle County.
“We helped people across Delaware reduce their energy bills and specifically try to encourage energy efficiency and electrification,” said Smith.
According to Smith, affordability is the biggest issue to voters, especially with the rising cost of utility bills.
“Everyone is worried about the affordability crisis. The cost of living is just incredibly high.”
“I’ve been knocking on doors for months now, and every time I hear people say: ‘My utility bill has gone up 75 percent. My property taxes are going through the roof. I can’t afford health care. I can’t afford to save for my children’s college or my own retirement.’”
“The treasurer cannot solve all those problems. But what we can do is we can help people save for them and their family’s future,” said Smith.
Smith talked about his goal to increase awareness around Delaware EARNS, a state sponsored Roth IRA geared toward people who don’t have access to a traditional employer-sponsored retirement plan.
“There’s roughly 150,000 Delawareans who could take advantage of it,” said Smith. “These are people who are the backbone of Delaware’s economy, whether they are working for small businesses, certain nonprofits, or working the gig economy,” said Smith.
Smith said that many people working for companies such as Doordash and Lyft are not saving for the future but that they could be doing so in a tax-advantaged way through Delaware EARNS.
“I think there’s some work that needs to be done to make a clear on-ramp for the self-employed and for those gig workers to get enrolled,” said Smith.
“Right now, we just passed our 10,000th account, which is fantastic, but there’s a lot of room left to grow.”
Smith also spoke of his plans to build on the Aspire 529 College Savings Plan, a project that helps traditionally underserved students finance their college education in ways that traditional 529 plans don’t.
Smith said that Delaware needs a treasurer who will work to protect the first state from the Trump administration, and he says is ready to step up to the plate.
“I think we need someone who’s willing to speak out and try to work with state treasurers, comptrollers, and other elected officials across the country to push back over the next two years.”
“We have a president in Washington, D.C., who is working with his Republican cronies in Congress to attack blue states like ours and threaten our federal funding.”
“I think that the best form of resistance is resilience,” said Smith.
Smith identifies as pansexual, having come out 10 years ago in college. He said that he is proud of the representation Delaware already has, from Rep. Sarah McBride to Travis McDermott, the mayor of Newark.
“I would love to partner with our attorney general, our governor, and our General Assembly to defend our LGBTQ+ citizens and residents as much as possible,” said Smith.
“I’d be honored to be Delaware’s first openly LGBTQ+ treasurer,” said Smith.
Mike Ramone, the Republican nominee for treasurer, has described Delaware as being in a ‘financial crisis.’The Blade asked Smith to respond to Ramone’s statement.
“I would disagree with Mike Ramone. I think Delaware is in a very strong financial shape, with the caveat of our state employee health benefits, which needs to be more well funded.”
Michael Smith will face Ted Lauzen and Mike Miller on the ballot for the Sept. 15 primary.
Poland
Poland begins to legally recognize same-sex marriages from other countries
‘This is an important milestone, but it should not be the final destination’
Poland has begun to recognize same-sex marriages legally performed outside the country.
TVP World, the country’s public broadcaster, reported civil registry offices began to “transcribe same-sex marriages legally” conducted outside of Poland on Aug. 22.
The EU Court of Justice in Luxembourg last November ruled in favor of a same-sex couple who challenged Poland’s refusal to recognize their German marriage. Poland’s Supreme Administrative Court in March reaffirmed the decision.
The couple, who lives in Poland, brought their case to Polish courts in 2019. The Supreme Administrative Court referred it to the EU Court of Justice.
The Polish government in May announced it will recognize same-sex marriages legally performed in other EU countries. Polish President Karol Nawrocki on July 17 vetoed bills that would have extended rights to same-sex couples.
Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal a few days later rejected the recognition of same-sex marriages legally performed in other EU countries. The Love Does Not Exclude Association, a Polish marriage equality advocacy group, in an Aug. 26 press release notes the ruling “does not prevent implementation of these new regulations” because the Constitutional Tribunal is “largely discredited” and the government considers it “to be improperly constituted.”
“This is an important milestone, but it should not be the final destination,” said Maja Heban of the Love Does Not Exclude Association. “No couple should have to cross a border to marry. Our goal is allowing loving, committed couples to marry in Poland in the first place. The law now increasingly recognizes these marriages once couples return to Poland in areas such as healthcare and social security, but significant gaps remain, mainly lack of recognition of same-sex parents which directly impacts security of their children.”
Germany, Belgium, France, Ireland, Spain, and Portugal are among the EU countries in which same-sex couples can legally marry. Andorra, whose prime minister, Xaviet Espot Zamora, is openly gay, and Switzerland are among the other European nations that have extended marriage rights to same-sex couples.
The Netherlands in 2001 became the first country in the world to extend marriage rights to same-sex couples. Activists who participated in this year’s World Pride that took place in Amsterdam earlier this summer marked this milestone.
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