Joesolmonese-2009losangelesgaladinner

Prepared Remarks for HRC President Joe Solmonese Los Angeles Gala Dinner and Hero Awards March 14, 2009 I want to begin tonight by saying this as simply and as clearly as I possibly can: No one was more proud or more honored to be in the fight with you to defeat Proposition 8 than we were at the Human Rights Campaign. And know this, too: No matter where this fight is headed, we will go there with you. Having said that, let's make this the night we turn a corner. When we turn our sights more toward that which lies ahead of us than that which is behind us. When we begin the process of turning our individual pain into our collective power. You know, we often compare our modern day struggle for full equality to the great Civil Rights Movement. We draw inspiration from heroic civil rights leaders like Julian Bond of the NAACP who is here with us tonight and who has been passionately outspoken about his support for full marriage equality. If that is the case, then more than just drawing inspiration from that time, we have got to remember what it took to forge social change and never forget. Forty four years ago this week, thousands of civil rights pioneers marched across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama with Martin Luther King. They marched

because while slavery had ended nearly one hundred years before, African Americans were still prevented from their basic right to cast a vote – prevented from exercising that right by senseless violence and intimidation. And so, people who had lots of heart but not many resources woke up that morning and knew, just knew, that they had to march over that bridge. And so they went, knowing that they might never return. That they might die on that bridge. And that even -- if by some miracle -- they won the day, they might never, ever live to see those long, overdue rights conveyed. To win full equality – both here in California and across this country will require the same kind of selfless determination from everyone in this room and every member of this community. In the modern day civil rights fight we find ourselves in, you, everyone of you in this room, are those very same courageous trailblazers. So at the Human Rights Campaign we are committed to being a part of this fight in California every single year until we win it – and so must each of you. If you need any greater inspiration to do that, just look around this room. Senator Dianne Feinstein is here tonight – a woman whose life is defined by public service and who proudly took to the airwaves to call out our opponents in the Proposition 8 fight for the lies that they told.

Mayor Villiaragosa is here tonight – as is the Mayor of San Francisco, Gavin Newsom. Both men have always stood strong with us and wear their support for our community like a badge of honor. John Duran, who we honor tonight, has made our equality his life’s work and we have benefitted greatly from that commitment. And Bruce Cohen and Lance Black are here tonight. They labored long and hard, not just to tell the story of Harvey Milk, but to leave lgbt Americans with a lasting legacy and a gift that turned out to be a masterpiece And Bruce Bastian is here tonight. He was one of the largest funders of the fight to defeat Proposition 8. And back in his home state of Utah, he continues to courageously shine a light on the hypocracy and lies that defined the Mormon Church’s role here. He understands more than anyone I know that the fight for our rights has no state borders. What is happening in Washington has everything to do with you here in California. And what happens in California influences our entire country. That is why more than half of the nearly Four Million Dollars that HRC sent to California came from outside of the state. And speaking of Washington: Because of your support, because you continue to stand with us, this year we will finally pass the inclusive Matthew Shepard Hate Crime Bill. You think that’s going

to be easy? The last time we took this fight on, our opponents launched a campaign telling religious leaders they could be arrested for what they said from the pulpit. We met them at every turn, we unleashed our groundtroops, we answered their lies and distortions. And we won. And this year, we will win again by an even bigger margin – and at long last President Obama will proudly sign that bill into law. And then, we will pass an Employment NonDiscrimination Bill that includes gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Americans. And even though we did not start this journey where we wanted to, we have spent the last year educating and inspiring members of Congress that a bill that protects our entire community is, ultimately the one that must land on this President’s desk. And thanks to you and your hard work, that will happen as well. And we’ll advance a series of bills that will finally address the economic and social inequities we face on a number of fronts – from legislation that will finally extend domestic partner benefits to federal employees to a bill that would remove the unfair burden we all face in the form of taxes on our domestic partner benefits. And because we all worked so hard to elect Barack Obama, he now has the opportunity to enact a number of executive orders from bringing down the barrier to HIV positive people coming into this country to a reinterpretation of the Family Medical Leave Act that would cover same sex couples.

And we will continue to invest in improving life for members of our community right here in California through programs like HRC’s All Children, All Families – a program right here in LA County that makes it easier for same-sex couples to adopt children or become foster parents. So, at the Human Rights Campaign, where there are more opportunities than ever before to advance equality for our community, we’ll keep working hard for all of you. And here in California, as we await the Supreme Court’s ruling, we know this much: They may create a steeper mountain for our opposition to climb or they may shock us all and find a way to wash down the mountain of majority bias once and for all. But whatever they do, know that we will be with you again and again for every fight until justice is finally served. No fundamental right should be put to a popular vote, and one day California and then the nation will realize the depth of their constitutional sins. Following that march in Selma, Dr. King spoke to his supporters. In that speech he said “I know you are asking today, How long will it take?” How long will prejudice blind the visions of men? How long will justice be crucified, and how long will the truth bear it?" His answer is as true today as it was then. How long? Not long, he said. Because no lie can live forever. Because Truth, crushed to earth, will rise again. And, in those words that have come to represent the

hope for a better tomorrow in all Americans - Because the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice. Thank you all very much.