“As the first lobbyist in the United States hired to work for the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, I’ve had a front row seat to historic advancements in LGBTQ equality,” said Dr. Christopher Pepin-Neff, LGBTQ researcher and Senior Lecturer in Public Policy at the University of Sydney. “House Majority Leader Hoyer was undoubtedly the ‘unsung hero’ of the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell repeal effort and really deserves more credit in the history books on the legislative effort, which has led to a more inclusive and fairer military for LGBTQ Americans.”
In research for the new book, Dr. Pepin-Neff paints a vivid picture of how the LGBTQ community has achieved groundbreaking advancements over the past two decades. The study and book illustrate how much of the success is owed to the LGBTQ movement’s legal organizations and demonstrates the overwhelming ineffectiveness of mainstream LGBTQ lobbying groups.
“Historic advancements in LGBTQ rights over the past two decades are now being written about in history books and taught in schools,” said Dr. Pepin-Neff. “It’s important we have a full understanding of how LGBTQ progress has happened, who the major players have been in achieving success to date and a hopefully a roadmap for the rest of the critical work left to be done.”
