Bill Clinton will receive GLAAD's first Advocate for Change Award during
the event. In 2011, Clinton advocated for marriage equality in New
York, stating that "for more than a century, our Statue of Liberty has
welcomed all kinds of people from all over the world yearning to be
free. In the 21st century, I believe New York’s welcome must include
marriage equality.” In 2012, he joined the Coalition to Protect North
Carolina Families in working against North Carolina's proposed Amendment
One to ban marriage and civil unions for gay and lesbian couples. Most
recently, he called for the Supreme Court to strike down the Defense of
Marriage Act in an op-ed for The Washington Post.
During his administration, Clinton became the first U.S. President to
appoint out gay and lesbian people to all levels of government. He
appointed more than 150 including James Hormel as America's first openly
gay ambassador. During the height of the HIV/AIDS crisis, his
administration convened the first White House Conference on the
epidemic, created the national AIDS Policy Coordinator post, and
expanded funding for research. In 2002, his Clinton Health Access
Initiative (CHAI) began as the Clinton HIV/AIDS Initiative to address
the HIV/AIDS crisis in the developing world.
"President Clinton's support of the LGBT community and recognition
that DOMA, the so-called Defense of Marriage Act, is unconstitutional
and should be struck down shows that the political landscape continues
to change in favor of LGBT equality," said GLAAD's Wilson Cruz. "Leaders
and allies like President Clinton are critical to moving our march for
equality forward."