What a night. A president who supports LGBT equality and the right of women to control their own bodies. The first time voters have affirmed marriage equality at the ballot box (in Maryland, Maine, and Washington) and defeated an attempt to ban it (in Minnesota). Our first openly LGBT U.S. Senator, Tammy Baldwin (D-WI). Openly gay representatives Jared Polis (D-CO) and David Cicilline (D-RI) re-elected, joined by newcomers Sean Patrick Maloney (D-NY) and Mark Pocan (D-WI)—a record number of out members of Congress. A record number of women in the Senate. I had dared not dream of so many wins.
And yet.
We still do not have federal recognition of same-sex relationships. Thirty-one states ban us from marriage. In a number of states, we cannot adopt children or secure the rights of both same-sex parents. We do not have federal protections against employment discrimination. Transgender people have even fewer protections than LGB ones. Our children still see few images of families like theirs on television, in books, and in classroom materials.
We should celebrate today, especially to relieve our children of any anxiety they may have felt over the election. We should then ask ourselves how we can best continue to make progress for our families, under a sympathetic president and an increasingly accepting society.
The wind is with us. Where will we sail?
How do you feel about the election results, both nationally and in your state? How will they affect you and your family personally?
