When President Biden took office in January 2021, he told queer Americans they deserve to have “a partner in the White House”—but is Joe Biden that person?
When we go back a few decades, Joe doesn’t exactly resemble an LGBTQ ally. He voted for the Defense of Marriage Act (1996) that blocked same-gender marriages, and in 1994, he moved to cut federal funding for schools teaching LGBTQ acceptance.
Cut to 2012, and suddenly Good Ol’ Joe is vocalizing support for marriage equality as the vice president of the United States—even before Obama did. Now, the Washington Post is saying Biden is “poised to be the nation’s most pro-equality president in history.”
It certainly sounds impressive; now, let’s see if they’re right.
Ending the Trans Military Ban
Just five days into his presidency, Biden reversed the Trans Military Ban put in place by Trump.
Reinstating Obama-Era Anti-Discrimination Policies
On his first day in office, Biden directed all federal agencies to include gender and sexual orientation in laws preventing discrimination on the basis of sex.
Eliminating Queer Youth Homelessness
Biden took a very important step in the process of ending queer homelessness by restoring protections for trans individuals seeking shelters.
Fighting Against “Religious Exemption” Claims
While Biden stated that the Trump administration “misused” these broad, religious exemptions, he hasn’t done much to combat them himself. One exception is his interpretation of Title IX, which now bars all schools, including religious institutions, from gender and sexual discrimination.
Ending the HIV Epidemic by 2025
The Biden administration has ordered insurers to cover PrEP, a drug essential to preventing HIV. However, this still doesn’t do much to benefit the communities most heavily impacted by the epidemic: the uninsured and marginalized
LGBTQ Representation
There’s one thing that no former president can beat Biden on and that’s cabinet diversity. He has set many firsts with the appointments of gay and trans members to his team.
Enacting the Equality Act
What Biden once hoped to be a sure fire win for the LGBTQ community has proved to be much more difficult than he imagined. With the Senate locked 50/50, any attempt by the democrats to pass the bill would inevitably be stopped via filibuster by republicans. Biden and Harris have both promised to continue doing everything they can to push the historic legislation forward.
