Are the Democrats barely discussing LGBTQ+ issues on purpose?

There’s been almost no mention of LGBTQ people during the Democratic National Convention. On the third night of the DNC, Pete Buttigieg took the stage to deliver an empowering speech. As the Secretary of the Department of Transportation, Pete Buttigieg is one of the most senior gay officials in the American government. And yet, neither he nor any of the speakers before him spoke about the need for pro-LGBTQ+ legislation. 

If you heard Pete Buttigieg’s speech, you may think gay people in America have achieved all that’s left to accomplish. 

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Pete Buttigieg spoke about his life with his husband, Chastin Buttigieg, and their two children. He referenced how ‘the right kind of politics’ allowed him to marry a man and raise two kids. 

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‘This kind of life went from impossible to possible. From possible to real. From real to almost ordinary, in less than half a lifetime.’ 

Secretary Buttigieg is right. America has made immense progress in supporting LGBTQ+ people. In my lifetime, the fight for LGBTQ+ rights in America has had significant wins. All the steps we’ve made toward progress, big and small, are incredible. But to describe the lives of LGBTQ+ people in America as ‘ordinary’ is dismissive of our actual circumstances. There is progress that we have yet to make, and there are people who want to undo the work we’ve done. 

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Just recently, the US Supreme Court allowed 26 states to block President Biden’s expansion of Title IX that sought to protect LGBTQ students in schools. So far this year, more than 500 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced by state legislators across the country. This has real consequences for LGBTQ people and families in America. Eight states now require teachers to out their students if they learn that they are LGBTQ. Ohio, Wyoming, and South Carolina have banned access to healthcare for Trans youth. States like West Virginia have removed LGBTQ+ mental health resources from their government websites. 

It’s not enough to be against anti-LGBTQ+ policies. Democrats should be working to promote pro-LGBTQ+ legislation that will protect people. From defending transgender people, banning conversion therapy, decriminalizing HIV, and addressing LGBTQ+ youth homelessness and mental health, there is still so much left to do. And while HRC president Kelley Robinson made a mention of book bans and queer partnership last night, the conference hasn’t mentioned the majority of the issues facing our community other than that brief speech.

Pete Buttigieg and his ordinary family are a beautiful example of what can happen when LGBTQ+ people are protected, allowed to prosper, and love freely. But he is the exception, not the rule. The fight for LGBTQ+ equality and acceptance is not over, not even close.