Equality for All

Not all of the gay couples across America flocked to California to tie the knot on Tuesday. Some stayed in Washington, D.C. to lobby for health benefits.

Openly gay U.S. Representative Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.) spoke at the Center for American Progress (CAP) on June 10. Baker supports the Lieberman-Smith Bill, which would give rights to gay partners of federal employees, including her own partner of 12 years. And she is not alone.

“216,000 federal employees are denied benefits that others have such as health care and access…to medical leave,” said Winnie Stachelberg, Vice President for External Affairs at CAP. “We need to meet needs of gay and lesbian federal employees.”

Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright argued that gays’ needs include “equal treatment under law.”

“What does it say about us when a cat receives more benefits [than a gay partner]?” Albright told an audience of 75. “There are those who would prefer the old days when people had wooden teeth….People [need to be] willing to accept an idea whose time has come.”

Senator Gordon Smith (R-Ore.), said he can name at least a dozen Republicans who support his bill. And like Albright, he said that the government needs to be “leading not following.”

“Healthcare is second only to salary. No one should be disadvantaged because of race, religion or sexual orientation,” said Smith. “Our objective as policymakers is to get more people covered; the biggest advantage is to enlarge the pools of insured people.”

Besides healthcare, Albright said that the government is losing valuable employees, because it doesn’t recognize gay partners’ needs.

“The goal is to make it possible for people to serve our country without impacting families,” Albright said. “We want our country to be represented by the best and that can’t happen if people are being discriminated against.”

Michael Guest, America’s first gay ambassador, said he resigned as Ambassador to Romania because of discrimination. He said that his pet canary received more rights than his partner of 12 years, Alex Nevarez. “The government would pay for transportation of my pet canary but not my partner,” said Guest.

“[My] partner is allowed to go overseas, but that’s where the benefits stop,” said Guest. “Health benefits aren’t covered. If there was a medical emergency, the employee is responsible for figuring out what do with his or her partner.”

Guest argued that this matter has nothing to do with political parties, but it has everything to do with America’s values.

“This is all a matter of protections that employees should have for their families when they go overseas into danger,” said Guest. “We have the same needs and aspirations. We want same benefits that all families want.”

Baldwin wants the same rights for her partner.

“As I fight for equal rights for all gay and lesbian federal employees, I’m fighting for me too,” said Baldwin. “Same sex partners deserve the same rights until the right to marry is won everywhere.”

Guest, who was raised as a Southern Baptist, said he fell in love with D.C. as an intern over 30 years ago. However, he also fell in love with his partner, and he said he was forced to choose.

“The career I had loved at first sight conflicted with my partner [whom I had also] loved at first sight,” Guest said. “This shouldn’t be a matter of party [affiliation]. America stands for certain principles.”

Melinda Zosh is an intern at the American Journalism Center, a training program run by Accuracy in Media and Accuracy in Academia.