Join us on March 25th for our first Busan-GSND Chapter Annual General Meeting 2023. We will be electing our chapter leadership and developing a strategy for the 2024 elections. 

Please note that you must be a member of Democrats Abroad Republic of Korea Busan-GSND to vote in this meeting. Click here to join Democrats Abroad and enter a valid Busan or South Gyeongsan address to join the chapter. 

Candidates must adhere to the election rules adopted by the Nominations and Election Committee. There will not be a vote on the day of the meeting unless a position receives zero nominations; all voting will take place electronically otherwise. If you have any questions or concerns, please email [email protected] Click here to vote for your 2023-2025 leadership. You must be a member of the Busan-GSND for your vote to be tabulated. 

If you are unable to attend the meeting, please use this form to assign your vote by proxy to a member who will attend. 

After the one-hour AGM, feel free to stick around for our Jeonpo pub crawl!

We'll go around four pubs in the area and chat politics and life in Busan. Whether you're a long-time resident or new in town, this could be a great opportunity to get to know new places and people.

This part of the event will start at 5 PM and end at 9 PM.

We are ready to spring into action with our 21st-Century Economic Bill of Rights! This month we focus on the Earth and Environmental Justice. Join us to plan promotion for our “Let’s Get Real, Let’s Get Radical” event, as well our May and summer slate of activities, including our Economic Bill of Rights resolution for the DA AGM in June!

Our Progressive Spring Agenda

• Reduce the power of wealth in U.S. politics now
• All hands on deck to combat climate change
• Prepare for Dems Abroad elections and Annual General Meetings (chapter, country, region, global)
  
  • Candidate nominations and support
  • Resolution proposals
  • Charter amendments

Interested in running for election in DA? We invite all interested in talking more about running for election in DA, the roles of DPCA Voting Representative and DA leaders, to stay on for informal discussion following the meeting.

Nominate your favorite motivational songs to open and close our meeting by email to [email protected]

Make it monthly! Consider a monthly donation to support the impactful work of DA volunteers around the world, making the margin of victory in close races. Please donate whatever you can today. Thank you!

Please RSVP below for the Zoom link.

How can we tackle wealth inequality effectively in the United States? Providing opportunity and security from cradle to rocking chair is our progressive answer. Join our guest speakers to learn more about proposed legislation for Baby Bonds and Social Security Expansion.  Take action to make them reality.

Confirmed speakers:

• AYANNA PRESSLEY, U.S. Rep. Massachusetts CD-7 
• ALEX LAWSON, Social Security Works Executive Director 

Here are resources to prepare for the event:

• American Opportunity Accounts Act (Baby Bonds) https://pressley.house.gov/2023/02/15/pressley-booker-re-introduce-bicameral-baby-bonds-legislation-to-tackle-wealth-inequality/
• Social Security Expansion Act: https://www.sanders.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/Social-Security-Expansion-Act-one-pager-Final.pdf
  

All are welcome to attend! Please RSVP to receive the Zoom link.

Thanks to our co-sponsors: Global Seniors Caucus, proDA Austria, proDA Germany, Global Youth Caucus

RSVP below for the Zoom link!

While there is no donation required to attend, the suggested donation for this event is $10. Click here to donate. Help Democrats Abroad volunteers mobilize voters around the world. Help us fight for progressive policy changes in the new Congress!

We are excited to build a vibrant community in the Incheon/greater Gyeonggi-do region and to assist Americans exercise their right to vote! According to government statistics, there are around 5,000 Americans in this area, a number which we feel has strong potential to make a difference. If you have any questions or would like to get involved, please reach out to us.

Welcome to Democrats Abroad Busan-Gyeongsangnam-do! We're excited to invite you to join our organization. We're looking to join the thousands of Americans here to build a community of activists looking to help our local community and the one back home. Social events, informational events for expats, as well as election events are some of the things we do. If you have any questions from voting to joining the local community, reach out to us! Look out for our events page on SNS!

Among our core goals is increased inclusion, fairness, accountability, and transparency in our domestic political processes. That holds true for the work of our Democratic Party, too. We strive to achieve that goal with information, discussions, events, and calls to action.

At our May 30th 2022 Progressive Snapshot of the Primaries, Larry Cohen, Our Revolution Board Chair, Vice Chair of the DNC Unity Reform Commission, and currently co-initiator of the DNC Members for Party Modernization, encouraged us to focus on the need to revise DNC and State Party rules to enhance their inclusion, fairness, accountability, and transparency. Larry cited the case of India Walton’s thwarted 2021 mayoral candidacy in Buffalo, NY as one of many powerful examples for how rules can stand in the way of progress. His goal is to change them to promote progress!

Editorial: The Gay Agenda for 2022

by Martha McDevitt-Pugh, DA LGBTQ+ Global Caucus vice chair

The DAUK LGBTQ+ Caucus kicked off this election year with a discussion of “The Gay Agenda" for 2022.

During the webinar, we heard from Sam Alleman, LGBTQ+ Coalitions Director at the DNC, to hear about measures the Biden Administration has taken to advance protections for LGBTQ+ people. These efforts started with signing executive orders on LGBTQ+ rights within hours of taking the oath of office — including preventing and combating discrimination on the basis of gender identity or sexual orientation and the whole-of-government initiative establishing efforts to advance equity and justice for communities who have been left behind, underserved, or discriminated against by federal policies, laws, and programs, including LGBTQ+ communities. They also included lifting the ban on transgender military service and providing Americans with same-sex partners with an equal pathway to registering their children born abroad as U.S. citizens.

I joined Alleman to speak about the state of play across the country — and the role each of us has to play in advancing LGBTQ+ rights ahead of the midterm elections. The event was moderated by Caroline Ruchonnet and organized by DAUK LGBTQ+ Caucus chair Austin Allaire.

Republican state legislatures across the country have been targeting some of society’s most vulnerable — LGBTQ+ youth. Nearly 240 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been filed in the first three months of 2022 alone, half of them targeting transgender people. From Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill to Iowa’s new anti-trans sports law, we are seeing Republicans enact a hateful, bigoted agenda which jeopardizes the hard-won progress of the LGBTQ+ community.

LGBTQ+ issues are expected to be highlighted throughout the 2022 election cycle, making it critical that Democrats use the opportunity to speak to the issues. Relational organizing will be more important than ever — checking in with friends and family to find out if they’re registered and ready to vote.

The panel noted that getting out the vote in the 2022 midterms is as important as it was in 2018 and 2020, when Democrats took power in the House, Senate and won the presidency. With Democrats Abroad mobilizing voters in all 50 states, DA is a good partner for the DNC and the DNC LGBTQ Caucus, to bring attention to local and state issues while encouraging Americans overseas to vote. U.S. democracy itself is at stake.

If you missed it, you can watch the event here.

(Let us know what you think about anything you read in the Newsletter. Or let us know if there’s something we should cover. Email us your feedback to [email protected].)

Editorial: Doing what we can in a time of war

by Irene Chriss, associate editor

Biden’s State of the Union address was not just front-loaded with calls to challenge Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, but it also delivered a bold and unequivocal message for LGBTQ+ Americans.

“And for our LGBTQ+ Americans, let’s finally get the bipartisan Equality Act to my desk. The onslaught of state laws targeting transgender Americans and their families is simply wrong,” Biden said. “… I’ll always have your back as your president, so you can be yourself and reach your God-given potential.”

Sarah Kate Ellis, CEO of GLAAD reacted, “The state of our union is only as strong as our action and commitment to ensure no marginalized person is left behind. LGBTQ voters are more motivated than ever to hold elected officials accountable in the midterms.”

The Equality Act continues to languish in the Senate due to inadequate Republican support. This underscores the importance of your vote in the midterm elections, and it’s easy to register online and receive an online ballot. Just go to https://www.votefromabroad.org/request/your-information for more information.

On the Ukrainian front, “All Americans should leave Ukraine,” Biden told NBC News, adding that he could not risk a clash with Russian troops that might trigger a broader military engagement. Biden insisted he would not use the military to extract anyone trapped by a Russian attack. According to a New York Times article, Biden officials made clear that the 2021 Kabul airlift was “unique” and U.S. officials would not rescue its citizens who remain in Ukraine.

Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, in a recent interview with a Ukrainian television station, said this decision had been made “out of an abundance of precaution.”

“It’s the prudent thing to do,” Blinken added, “because my personal responsibility is the safety and security of our people.”

If Kyiv falls, those who remain might be at particular risk of persecution. The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations office in Geneva warns that Russia has plans to kill or round up journalists, activists, minorities, dissidents, and LGBTQ Ukrainians to be placed in camps.

The U.S. has no requirements for the approximately nine million Americans living abroad to declare where they live, reported State Department spokesperson Ned Price. Despite not knowing how many American residents are in Ukraine, we do know they are in peril and no rescuers will be coming for those who stayed behind.

Organizations from the grassroots to the international level are taking steps to protect refugees who face additional layers of danger. A word of caution: While mass grassroots efforts can surface overnight, there is also a potential for scams. Do your research. Verify the organizations’ non-profit Form 990 or check social media accounts to see if they’ve posted any receipts of how they’re using people’s money.

Some resources have been provided by reputable publications such as the Los Angeles Times and the Washington Post.

Here are some others:

• Doctors Without Borders, https://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/what-we-do/news-stories/story/ukraine-we-are-calling-respect-human-life
• The International Rescue Committee, https://www.rescue.org/topic/ukraine-crisis
• Geneva-based International Committee of the Red Cross provides assistance to those in Ukraine, https://www.icrc.org/en/where-we-work/europe-central-asia/ukraine
• U.N. Crisis Relief, https://crisisrelief.un.org/ukraine-crisis
• The World Food Program, the U.N.’s anti-hunger humanitarian organization, has launched emergency relief operations in Ukraine and surrounding border countries, https://www.wfp.org/news/wfp-ramps-food-operation-ukraine-and-warns-worlds-hungry-cannot-afford-another-conflict
• Outright is supporting fifteen LGBTQ+ non-profits dealing with refugees in the region. Testimonials: https://outrightinternational.org/ukraine
• TGEU is handling 300 trans cases in Ukraine (https://tgeu.org/support-ukraine)
• LGBTQ+ Ukrainians in America (https://qua.community/)
• Immigration Equality is supporting Ukrainians to obtain asylum in the US (https://immigrationequality.org/get-involved/give/)
• Rainbow Railroad provides plane tickets and does advocacy (https://www.rainbowrailroad.org/)
• ORAM advocates and provides safehouses, including Berlin (https://www.oramrefugee.org/)

Do you have a story to tell about a Ukrainian relative or yourself? If you wish to share your story, email [email protected]. Any information, including your name, will not be published. Rather, all comments with be synthesized into an overview to keep our members safe and our readers informed.

(Let us know what you think about anything you read in the Newsletter. Or let us know if there’s something we should cover. Email us your feedback to [email protected].)

Editorial: Women deserve more than just one day

by Irene Chriss, associate editor

The earliest, "National Woman's Day" was February 28, 1909, in New York City, and was organized by the Socialist Party of America. Some claim it was a commemoration of the women’s garment workers’ protest in New York, but researchers allege this a myth intended to detach International Women's Day (IWD) from its socialist origins.

The day remained predominantly a communist holiday until roughly 1967 when it was taken up by second-wave feminists and re-emerged as a day of activism. It is sometimes known in Europe as the "Women's International Day of Struggle.” In the 1970s and 1980s, women's groups were joined by leftists and labor organizations in calling for equal pay, equal economic opportunity, equal legal rights, reproductive rights, subsidized child care, and the prevention of violence against women.

Now, in the 21st century, IWD has been criticized as heavily diluted and commercialized, particularly in the West, where it is sponsored by major corporations and used to promote general and vague notions of equality, rather than radical social reforms. It is now deemed by some social critics as reminiscent of Mother's Day greetings.

The Atlantic in 2012 published the following commentary:

“There's nothing inherently wrong with the idea ‘let's celebrate women’ — in fact, that's a great idea, and shouldn't be confined to just one day. (For that matter, we should celebrate men, too, and in fact, all humans.) But the trouble with one day designated for that purpose means that, implicitly, we're not doing that in the overall, are we? If we need to call it a day, there's trouble afoot. Beyond that, the way that many people are going about this ‘celebration' — and, we're not criticizing their intentions, which seem good, but the way in which those intentions are playing out — often seems to belittle the women they attempt to support.”

International Women’s Day is March 8. For more information, go to https://www.internationalwomensday.com/

(Let us know what you think about anything you read in the Newsletter. Or let us know if there’s something we should cover. Email us your feedback to [email protected].)

• Nancy Pelosi (CA-12), Speaker of the U.S. House: (202) 225-4965, (415) 556-4862; https://pelosi.house.gov/zip-code-lookup?form=/contact/email-me
• Steny Hoyer (MD-5), Majority Leader of U.S. House: (202) 225-4131 (legislative office), (202) 225-3130 (real office); https://www.majorityleader.gov/email (currently experiencing problems with CAPTCHA verification) 
• Jim Clyburn (SC-6), Majority Whip of the U.S. House: (202) 225-3315; https://clyburn.house.gov/contact-me; [email protected] (<--email provided by his office. Should try official module on government URL as well, though)

If access to anyone is blocked by a zip code, CAPTCHA malfunction, or any other impediment, contact [email protected] for tips on how to bypass such inconveniences and get your communication to them.

Bolded in red sections require filling in!

Call Script

This call script was inspired by Human Rights Watch and the H.R. 40 Coalition's Letter to Congress, a letter which 350+ organizations signed onto in support of H.R. 40. The DA Reparations Task Force is also a proud signatory of this letter.

Dear Speaker Pelosi / Majority Leader Hoyer / Majority Whip Clyburn:

Greetings, 

My name is ____ and I am calling Rep. XXX's office on behalf of Democrats Abroad, the foreign arm of the U.S. Democratic Party. As a DNC-recognized State Party, we seek to represent the more than 6.7 million voters who live abroad. This Black History Month, we strongly urge Rep. XXX to immediately bring House Resolution (H.R.) 40, the Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African-Americans Act, to a full vote on the House floor.

H.R. 40 has a record 215 members of Congress committed to voting “yes” when the bill comes to the House floor. Furthermore, the enactment of a commission to study reparations is a part of the Democratic Party's own 2020 platform. Now is the time to bring the bill to the floor. The world is watching.

We Dems Abroad firmly believe that addressing pervasive anti-Black racism and providing reparations, long overdue, cannot wait another day, month, year, or decade. We must act now.

We appreciate your listening to us. If you have any additional questions or need additional information, please contact me at: ______.  

Or contact the DA Reparations Task Force at: [email protected]

Email Script

This email script was inspired by Human Rights Watch and the H.R. 40 Coalition's Letter to Congress, a letter which 350+ organizations signed onto in support of H.R. 40. The DA Reparations Task Force is also a proud signatory of this letter.

Dear Speaker Pelosi / Majority Leader Hoyer / Majority Whip Clyburn:

My name is ____ and I am writing Rep. XXX on behalf of Democrats Abroad, the foreign arm of the U.S. Democratic Party. As a DNC-recognized State Party, we seek to represent the more than 6.7 million voters who live abroad. This Black History Month, we strongly urge Rep. XXX to immediately bring House Resolution (H.R.) 40, the Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African-Americans Act, to a full vote on the House floor.

H.R. 40 has a record 215 members of Congress committed to voting “yes” when the bill comes to the House floor. With this level of support, it should pass the House, so long as Leadership sticks to public promises to get behind it and advance the bill. Furthermore, the enactment of a commission to study reparations is a part of the Democratic Party's own 2020 platform. Now is the time to make our words reality. American voters around the world are watching.

People in the US are now more eager than ever to pull back the curtain on institutions to see whether they have helped to advance or stall racial progress, and those institutions include the US Congress. As states, cities, and other institutions, including the state of California; Providence, Rhode Island; Burlington, Vermont; Tallahassee, Oklahoma; Greenbelt, Maryland; Detroit, Michigan; Evanston, Illinois; Georgetown University; the Jesuits; and others pursue reparations at an accelerated pace, it would be sheer irony for the federal government, which sanctioned the kidnapping and trafficking in human beings that slavery entailed, and maintained subsequent anti-Black laws and institutions, to continue to lag behind.

H.R. 40 would establish an expert commission to study the legacy of slavery and how the failure to address harms stemming from it have resulted in huge racial disparities between white and Black people in: the ability to accumulate wealth; to access health care, education, housing and employment opportunities; environmental outcomes; and policing, among other things. 

Like the commission that investigated the forced relocation and wrongful incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II, H.R. 40 can help pave the way for a critical and truthful reckoning and accounting for past harms and the present harms that flow from them.

The US Congress made history when, on April 14, 2021, the House Judiciary Committee voted to move H.R. 40 to the House Floor for full consideration, the first time in the bill’s 32-year history. Eight months later, the bill continues to languish. When the bill has so much support, it would be an indictment against everything we, as Democrats, stand for if we allow the bill to die. While we recognize the importance of symbolic measures, such as the speedy and nearly unanimous vote in the House of Representatives this year to establish Juneteenth as a federal holiday, the House must similarly act without delay to bring H.R. 40 to the floor for a vote so that a substantive study can proceed that can bring about real change.

The world is waiting to see how the US government makes amends and repairs the harm stemming from slavery and legal discrimination, but every year the same message gets sent: Black votes matter, but not Black lives. Continued investments in good public policy measures, such as tax cuts for families with children and investments in affordable housing in the Build Back Better Act, are important, but public policy alone does not address past harm and has never been enough to end contemporary forms of racism, dehumanization, and exclusion. Undoing racial injustice and achieving racial healing requires remedy and repair, a principle well established in international human rights law.

We Dems Abroad firmly believe that addressing pervasive anti-Black racism and providing reparations, long overdue, cannot wait another day, month, year, or decade. We are in a once-in-a-lifetime moment that we cannot let slip away if we are to begin the process of righting the country’s wrongs. Voters will remember what Congress did and did not do when it had the power to act. It has that power now. It should ask itself: How do we want history to remember us?

We hope that we can count on you to be on the right side of history and move Congress to take this meaningful first step in the right direction. We ask that you bring H.R. 40 to the House floor for a vote as soon as possible.

We appreciate your time and consideration. If you have additional questions or need additional information, please contact me at: ______.  

Or contact the DA Reparations Task Force at: [email protected]

Democratically Yours,

______

Editorial: Support democracy by voting for Democrats

by Fred Kuhr, editor

January 6, 2022, marked a dark day in American history — the first anniversary of the Trump-backed Insurrection and invasion of the U.S. Capitol. Many Democrats — and only a handful of Republicans — marked the occasion solemnly and honestly.

The disgraced, twice-impeached former president, who continues to promulgate the Big Lie that the 2020 election was “stolen” from him, marked the anniversary just as one would expect, by sending out a press release (since he can’t tweet) filled with misinformation.

New reporting has also showed that anti-LGBTQ+ ideology was running rampant at the Insurrection. Among those who have been charged so far for their participation in the riot is a slew of leaders in the anti-LGBTQ+ movement. They include Owen Shorter, a host of Alex Jones’ InfoWars; Mark Sahady, vice president of the far-right group Super Happy Fun America; Gina Michelle Bisignano, best known for shouting anti-gay slurs at an anti-mask protest; Suzanne Ianni, operations director of Super Happy Fun America; and Kevin Tuck, an anti-LGBTQ+ YouTuber.

On the side of the Democrats and “future former Republicans,” to borrow a phrase from Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, are people like David Cicilline, the openly gay congressman from Rhode Island who was an impeachment manager during the former president’s second impeachment trial.

In an interview with The Hill, Cicilline recounts what it was like to work in Congress during the Insurrection and how it inspired him to start working on the second impeachment. He said that California Congressman Ted Lieu “came into my office because he had been evacuated from his office building.” As they watched the violence on TV, they started “writing what the articles of impeachment would actually look like.”

During the impeachment trial, Cicilline said, “The president of the United States sided with the insurrectionists. He celebrated their cause. He validated their attack.” And while many Republican legislators on that day said the former president was responsible, they have backtracked out of fear — placing partisanship and power over democracy and peace.

The differences between the two political parties has never been starker. Please keep that in mind as you register to vote in this year’s elections. Democracy hangs in the balance.

(Let us know what you think about anything you read in the Newsletter. Or let us know if there’s something we should cover. Email us your feedback to [email protected].)

Editorial: Get ready to vote like your rights depend on it

by Fred Kuhr, editor

If no other lesson is learned from the recent U.S. Supreme Court hearing on the Mississippi abortion case known formally as Dobbs v. Jackson, it’s that elections have consequences.

This is something Republicans have known for a long time now. Even during the Trump era, many conservatives were willing to overlook a laundry list of anti-democratic moves and statements — as well as a whole host of other issues and problems too long to rehash here — just because it meant getting Supreme Court nominees that would side with them.

And now it looks like the Court is in a position to either severely hamper or simply overturn Roe v. Wade, a decision that has ensured safe and legal abortion rights for almost 50 years.

Make no mistake, if that right can be taken away by the country’s highest court, so could other rights such as marriage equality and sexual freedom, issues that, like abortion, fall under the U.S. Constitution’s guarantees of personal privacy.

So, with midterm elections coming up in 2022, the need for progressive, liberal, center-left and centrist voters to support Democratic candidates at all levels of government has never been greater. If we lose the Senate, President Biden will never be able to get another judicial nominee through.

The previous president made a mess of things, even violently radicalizing a segment of the electorate. The only way to reverse the damage before it gets any worse is to strengthen the hand of Democrats.

Plan now to request your ballot from your home state in 2022, and vote like your rights depend on it — because they do.

(Let us know what you think about anything you read in the Newsletter. Or let us know if there’s something we should cover. Email us your feedback to [email protected].)

In the beginning of December, the heavily right-leaning US Supreme Court heard arguments on the Mississippi law that aims to ban abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy and has the potential to completely overturn Roe v. Wade. The fact that we find ourselves, in 2021, on the verge of turning back the clock to a time before 1973 seems straight out of a dystopian movie. Unfortunately, it is not! It is a troubling reality for hundreds of thousands of American women, today. A reality that includes potentially life-changing – and, in some cases, life-threatening – implications as well as the quashing of a fundamental human right. 

There are so many disturbing facets to this historical moment. For one, Senator Susan Collins has come under fire for believing Brett Kavanaugh’s pre-Supreme Court confirmation position that Roe v. Wade is ‘settled law,’ which she claimed, at the time, resulted in her supporting his confirmation as a Supreme Court justice. Another disturbing point argued by an anti-abortion lawyer for Mississippi was that the right to an abortion is no longer necessary because ‘women have it all,’ citing Justice Amy Coney Barrett as an example of a successful woman with a career and 7 children. Most disturbing of all is the real and horrifying threat of a return to the days of back alley abortions. 

My takeaway from today is best summarized by the words of Justice Sonia Sotomayor: “Will [the US Supreme Court] survive the stench that this creates in the public perception that the Constitution and its reading are just political acts?” I am afraid that if Roe v. Wade is ultimately overturned, the credibility of our highest, and most revered, Court will be irreparably damaged. 

Furthermore, the Court has not blocked the current Texas abortion law (SB8), despite allowing further lawsuits against it to procede. 

There’s no need to wait for a decision to take action. 

• Sign the petition to Attorney General Merick Garland to keep the ERA alive: ERA petition
• Contact your representatives and tell them to support the ERA – Call to Action

What are your takeaways about what is going on?  If you’d like to drop me a line or vent via email, feel free to get in touch at [email protected].

All the best, 
Doris

Editorial: Democrats are good for mental health

by Fred Kuhr, co-editor

Thanksgiving is just around the corner, and we in the LGBTQ+ community have much to be thankful for this year. Most notably, we have a presidential administration full of allies, as well as members of our own community, instead of the hostile environment we all suffered through under the previous administration.

Many of us felt anxiety, depression and stress over those four years. And maybe you thought it was just you, your family, and your friends feeling this way.

But according to two new studies, those feelings were widespread. The conclusion? The Trump Administration was bad for LGBTQ+ mental health.

A report by Associate Professor Masanori Kuroki at Arkansas Tech University, which will be published in December in the journal Economics and Human Biology, shows that “extreme mental distress” increased among LGBTQ+ people during Trump’s rise and presidency.

The findings suggest “that the Biden Administration may have inherited higher rates of mental distress among LGBT people [than they would have] if Trump had not run and won the 2016 election.”

Another study from Adrienne Grzenda, an assistant clinical professor at UCLA, used data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System to compare “frequent mental distress” reported by different populations.

"A clear association exists between the 2016 election and the changeover to a decisively anti-LGBT administration and the worsening mental health of sexual and gender minority adults,” according to the report published in the journal LGBT Health.

The study also shows that bisexual and transgender people were hit the hardest by mental health distress during those years.

While both studies show an increase of mental health issues during the previous administration, all is not back to normal. Researchers agree that even while the previous president is not in the White House, “The ongoing introduction of anti-LGBTQ legislation in the states continues to expose LGBTQ people, especially children, to the risk of significant mental health consequences,” reported NBC News.

So while it’s easy to get complacent now that an ally is in the White House, we have to continue to stay involved and vote like our mental health depends on it — because it does.

(Let us know what you think about anything you read in the Newsletter. Or let us know if there’s something we should cover. Email us your feedback to [email protected].)

Editorial: Looking back at our history, looking forward to the future

by Fred Kuhr, co-editor

October is LGBTQ+ History Month, and openly gay Rhode Island Congressman David Cicilline — the lead sponsor of the Equality Act, which seeks to outlaw anti-LGBTQ+ discrimination across the country — is one of the “icons” being honored this year by lgbthistorymonth.com. Another member of our community being honored as an icon is Deputy White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.

In being honored this year, Cicilline and Jean-Pierre are in the company of such notable LGBTQ+ luminaries as Susan B. Anthony, W.H. Auden and Janis Ian.

This month reminds us that it is important both to look at where we are right now as a community, but also where we came from in the past, so that we may appreciate how far we’ve come and understand how far we still have to go.

Not coincidentally, October 11 is National Coming Out Day. In this month’s issue of the newsletter, Democrats Abroad LGBTQ+ Caucus Chair Bob Vallier looks at some of the history behind our communal coming out of the closet so that we may better understand all that we have gone through as a political movement for equality.

Part of that coming out took place 10 years ago last month. In September 2011, President Barack Obama — with then-Vice President Joe Biden at his side — signed the repeal of the military’s discriminatory “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy.” That policy forced LGBTQ+ service personnel to keep quiet about their sexual orientation or gender identity under penalty of discharge. Over 100,000 LGBTQ+ servicemembers were discharged under the policy.

“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” was signed into law by President Bill Clinton, and many in the community were angered by this. But Clinton, who wanted a full repeal of what was then an all-out ban on LGBTQ+ service personnel, was blocked by Republicans in Congress — a situation that is nothing new for Democratic presidents who want to do something progressive in the interest of equality and justice. So a compromise was reached, and “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” became the policy.

What’s hard to remember given how far we’ve come is that “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” was indeed progress in the mid-1990s. Clinton may have given us a policy that no one liked, but it took a cultural shift over the next 15 or so years in order for Obama to be able to repeal it.

One more example why it’s important to look back in order to look forward.

(Editors’ note: As of this issue of the newsletter, Fred Kuhr and Irene Chriss will be the co-editors.)

Editorial: A new caucus chair and much news to catch up on

by Betsy Ettorre and Fred Kuhr, co-editors

This month we’d like to welcome Bob Vallier as our new Democrats Abroad LGBTQ+ Global Caucus Chair. Bob has been active in DA for a number of years and is currently DA Italy Vice Chair and Chair — Central Italy chapter. We welcome him as chair and look forward to his leadership in this important work for the LGBTQ+ community.

We’d also that to thank Martha McDevitt-Pugh for her service to the Caucus for the past eight years. We are grateful to her for her commitment to building up the DA LGBTQ+ Caucus.

Co-editor Fred Kuhr reports on important LGBTQ+ news including a group of senators urging support for LGBTQ+ asylum seekers, more LGBTQ+ appointments in the Biden Administration, and Pete and Chasten Buttigieg’s new babies.

Irene Chriss and Betsy Ettorre worked together on an article about the California recall election and its impact on LGBTQ+ rights. As many of you know, a similar 2003 California recall had a serious impact on our community. So our important work supporting politicians who support our community continues.

Editorial: Another Pride Day added to our history

by Betsy Ettorre

The DA June Pride month was packed with, well with, prideful events. Including a commemoration by President Biden to the Pulse Nightclub 2016 tragedy.
 
Our July newsletter contains summaries of our June 20 Equality Act program, a report of the webinar with Tammy Baldwin, a thoughtful reflection on what pride means, and the White House’s homage to the Pulse Nightclub mass shooting in Florida.
 
As President Biden said during that program, “This afternoon, we celebrate. Tomorrow we go back to work”.
 
There’s a lot of work to do and we are looking for volunteers to help.  

Can you write, edit and/or proofread? Do you have IT skills you can share?  
 
Please see our request to find LGBTQ volunteer newsletter writers as well as our search for volunteers to share their poetic expressions in our ongoing quest for equity.
 
We hope you had a great 4th of July!