Congressman Alan Lowenthal has been appointed vice-chair of the U.S. House of Representatives LGBT Equality Caucus, in acknowledgement of his commitment to equality and LGBT issues, according to a press release from the Congressman’s office.
According to the release, the Caucus was formed in 2008 by Co-Chairs Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Barney Frank (D-MA), along with 90 members of Congress strongly committed to the human rights for the LGBT community in the U.S. and worldwide. The Caucus is a resource for Members of Congress and their staff and focuses on extending equal rights, repealing discriminatory laws, eliminating hate-motivated violence and improving the health and well being of all regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity or expression.
“I am honored to serve in a leadership position on the LGBT Equality Caucus. For my entire adult life, I have fought to defend the basic human rights of equality and equal treatment for all people. While we still have a long journey ahead, in a short space of time, we have made tremendous strides towards full equality and acceptance of the LGBT community,” Congressman Lowenthal said in a statement.
Lowenthal joined the Caucus in 2013 after he was elected to Congress. He will serve on the caucus as a co-chair to one of the caucus’ newly formed Equality Caucus Task Forces, which was created to focus leadership expertise on addressing the specific needs of the LGBT community, according to the release.
He continued, “At the same time, however, many places in the world remain a dangerous and even deadly place for LGBT people. The only way to combat this global issue is for the U.S. to shine as a beacon of equality to the world, while at the same time defending and advancing the progress we have made at home. This is one of the reasons I recently joined with Sen. Ed Markey in successfully calling on Secretary of State John Kerry to appoint a special envoy on global LGBT issues within the State Department. As a member of the Equality Caucus, I look forward to working with the recently appointed special envoy, Randy Berry.”