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LOU CHIBBARO JR
Friday, August 15, 2008
A
final
draft
of
the
Democratic
Party’s
2008
platform
strengthens
the
party’s
support
for
gay
civil
rights
and
for
the
first
time
calls
for
an
end
to
discrimination
based
on
gender
identity.
The
document,
which
is
to
be
presented
to
the
Democratic
National
Convention
in
Denver
later
this
month
for
final
approval,
also
includes
what
gay
Democratic
activists
described
as
strongly
worded
language
opposing
the
Defense
of
Marriage
Act
and
“Don’t
Ask,
Don’t
Tell,”
which
bars
openly
gay
people
from
serving
in
the
military.
But
the
platform
draft
approved
Aug.
9
by
the
party’s
186-member
Platform
Committee
omits
any
mention
of
the
words
“gay”
or
“lesbian,”
which
had
been
included
in
the
Democrats’
2004
platform.
The
document,
discussed
by
Democratic
officials
and
gay
and
transgender
activists
during
a
conference
call
Monday
with
reporters,
was
not
publicly
available
at
that
time.
A
spokesperson
for
the
Democratic
National
Committee
said
the
DNC
expected
to
release
the
Aug.
9
draft
approved
by
the
platform
panel
in
Pittsburgh
later
this
week.
According
to
Democratic
officials
who
have
seen
it,
the
document
also
omits
a
provision
in
the
2004
platform
that
declared
the
party’s
opposition
to
a
constitutional
amendment
banning
same-sex
marriage,
which
the
2004
document
called
a
divisive
effort
backed
by
President
Bush
to
“politicize
the
constitution.”
Leaders
of
six
national
gay
and
transgender
advocacy
organizations,
including
the
National
Stonewall
Democrats,
nevertheless
hailed
the
2008
document
as
the
strongest
platform
on
gay
and
transgender
issues
ever
approved
by
a
major
U.S.
political
party.
“The
2008
Democratic
national
platform
is
by
far
the
most
pro-equality
platform
in
Democratic
history,”
said
U.S.
Rep.
Tammy
Baldwin
(D-Wisc.),
the
only
openly
lesbian
member
of
Congress.
Baldwin,
who
served
on
a
15-member
platform
drafting
committee,
called
the
document’s
gay
and
transgender
provisions
“historic”
and
predicted
they
would
set
the
tone
for
expanding
the
rights
of
“all
LGBT
people”
during
the
next
several
years.
She
noted
that
inclusion
in
the
final
draft
of
language
opposing
discrimination
based
on
gender
identity
represents
the
first
time
non-discrimination
language
covering
transgender
persons
has
appeared
in
the
party’s
platform.
For
nearly
20
years,
the
Democratic
platforms
have
included
provisions
opposing
discrimination
based
on
sexual
orientation,
which
is
said
to
cover
gay,
lesbian
and
bisexual
people.
Baldwin
said
the
2008
document’s
strongly
stated
opposition
to
the
“Don’t
Ask,
Don’t
Tell”
policy
on
gays
in
the
military
was
another
important
breakthrough
for
the
party.
The
2004
platform
includes
a
vague
call
for
opening
the
military
to
“all”
qualified
Americans,
but
makes
no
specific
mention
of
“Don’t
Ask,
Don’t
Tell.”
She
also
noted
the
gay
and
transgender
rights
provisions
were
“fully
supported”
by
Democratic
presidential
candidate
Sen.
Barack
Obama,
who
is
the
party’s
presumptive
presidential
nominee.
Baldwin
joined
two
Democratic
Platform
Committee
members
—
lesbian
State
Rep.
Patricia
Todd
of
Alabama
and
transgender
and
AIDS
activist
Diego
Sanchez
of
Massachusetts
—
in
Monday’s
telephone
conference
call,
where
they
answered
questions
about
the
platform
from
reporters
with
the
gay
media.
The
conference
call
was
organized
by
National
Stonewall
Democrats,
a
gay
partisan
group
that
pushed
for
including
gay
and
trans
related
provisions
in
the
document.
“It’s
a
tremendous
honor
to
be
the
first
transgender
person
appointed
by
a
DNC
chair
to
the
Platform
Committee,”
Sanchez
said
during
the
conference
call.
“I
believe
the
platform
reflects
incredible
educational
and
persuasive
work
that’s
been
done
by
organizations
and
people
and
that
it’s
been
done
for
years,”
he
said.
“It
shows
the
party’s
desire
and
its
readiness
for
inclusion.”
19
gays
on
Democratic
platform
committee
DNC
Chair
Howard
Dean
appointed
Sanchez
to
the
Platform
Committee
as
part
of
a
group
of
gay
and
transgender
Democrats
that
Dean
named
to
Democratic
Convention
standing
committees.
A
list
released
by
National
Stonewall
Democrats
shows
that
a
total
of
19
gays
or
lesbians,
along
with
Sanchez,
served
on
the
Platform
Committee,
with
most
being
appointed
by
party
leaders
in
nine
states.
Gay
Democrat
Jay
Fissette,
an
elected
member
of
the
Arlington
County
Board,
and
lesbian
Democrat
Ingrid
Duran
are
members
of
the
Platform
Committee
from
Virginia.
Gay
Democrat
Luke
Clippinger
is
a
member
of
the
platform
panel
from
Maryland,
according
to
the
list.
An
earlier
draft
of
the
platform,
which
circulated
among
activists
and
party
leaders
last
week,
drew
criticism
from
some
gay
activists
and
bloggers,
who
said
it
appeared
to
have
weakened
a
provision
in
the
2004
Democratic
platform
addressing
gay
families.
The
2004
prevision
states,
“We
support
full
inclusion
of
gay
and
lesbian
families
in
the
life
our
nation
and
seek
equal
responsibilities,
benefits
and
protections
for
these
families.”
The
earlier
draft
of
the
2008
platform,
which
was
approved
by
the
smaller
platform
drafting
panel
on
which
Baldwin
served,
stated,
“We
support
the
full
inclusion
of
all
families
in
the
life
of
our
nation
and
support
equal
responsibility,
benefits,
and
protections.”
Baldwin
said
she
and
other
members
of
the
full
platform
committee
proposed
an
amendment
to
add
“more
specificity”
to
the
gay
family
provision.
She
said
the
Obama
campaign
and
the
full
Platform
Committee
agreed
to
include
the
gay
amendment
in
an
omnibus
“manager’s
amendment”
that
the
full
committee
approved
on
Aug.
9.
The
text
of
that
amendment
was
not
available
at
press
time.
But
in
the
telephone
briefing
held
for
reporters
on
Monday,
...
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