He ended Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, backs the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, granted hospital visitation rights to gay partners, expanded federal benefits to gay couples, hosted a gay pride event at the White House and taped videos to encourage bullied young homosexuals, but some in the community say President Obama has let them down.
“We get glimpses of the 2008 Obama, but we aren’t seeing that hope and change yet,” said Heather Cronk, managing director of GetEQUAL, a civil rights group that has dispatched nearly 1,000 to protest at Obama campaign offices to demand that the president sign an executive order prohibiting federal contractors from discriminating against workers based on sexual orientation.
While Cronk supports Obama’s reelection, she said that the president’s efforts to date “aren’t enough” and that “he’s stopped short” of making essential moves to end workplace discrimination, a key freedom sought by gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgenders.
Her group plans more protests at Obama offices, which she described as mostly friendly, in part because many of the protesters are former 2008 Obama volunteers.
Most Americans, 73 percent in one poll, support adding sexual orientation and gender identity to 1960s-era rules barring workplace discrimination, but it’s a politically-sensitive issue, especially in the South.
The Obama campaign told Secrets that the president “has done more to advance gay rights than any other,” adding that he is pushing for legislation to end employment discrimination. What’s more, he’s the overwhelming favorite of gay voters.
Officials also said that the Romney campaign is turning its back on gays, though Cronk, while calling Obama “better than Romney,” noted Romney’s support for banning workplace discrimination against gays. And, she added, “Romney is moving to the center at a pretty fast clip.”
Cronk said Obama’s opposition to gay marriage hangs over the community and is depressing the enthusiasm of gay voters for Obama. “That hits people in the gut,” she said, adding that it is up to Obama to “help us get some enthusiasm,” and signing an executive order on workplace non-discrimination would help.
