President Joe Biden celebrated “International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia” on Monday, rallying the “LGBTQI+ community.”
“My Administration will always stand with the LGBTQI+ community,” Biden wrote in a statement sent to reporters.
Biden suggested some of former President Donald Trump’s executive orders defending religious freedom were “discriminatory,” noting that he had proudly rolled them back.
“Already, we have rolled back discriminatory policies targeting LGBTQI+ Americans, and we have made historic appointments of LGBTQI+ individuals to the highest levels of our government,” he wrote.
LGBTQI stands for “lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex.” The “+” symbol tries to include every “other gender” and sexual identity.
International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia celebrates the day when the World Health Organization declassified homosexuality as a mental disorder in 1990.
Biden noted the coronavirus pandemic and “rising authoritarianism around the world” threatened LGBTQI+ people and promised to defend their rights, especially “transgender women and girls of color” who faced violence.
The president criticized at least 70 countries that still criminalize same-sex relationships, but also criticized the United States for failing to protect LGBTQI+ people.
“Here at home, LGBTQI+ Americans still lack basic protection in 25 states, and they continue to face discrimination in housing, education, and public services,” he said.