Moves towards greater equality for GLBTI people in the world’s remaining superpower will have a flow on effect across developed and developing countries alike.
Just this month we have seen same-sex couples begin to marry in New York State, presidential endorsement of a bill that would allow the US Government to recognise and provide equal benefits to legal same-sex marriages, and an end to the dismissal of gays and lesbians ahead of a formal end to the ban on openly gay armed service personnel on September 20.
Despite a well funded opposition, most Americans now support same-sex marriage and even stridently anti-gay Republican presidential hopefuls like Michelle Bachman are talking about leaving it to the states to define marriage as they see fit.
By 2013 same-sex marriage is likely to have been legalised in Maryland, Maine, New Jersey and Oregon and returned in California – bringing marriage equality to one in five US states and the US capital and just a hop across state lines for same-sex couples in another dozen states.
Every state that falls add pressures on countries across the developed world to make their own reforms, whether they look up to the US or down.
Meanwhile, the US Embassy in Islamabad this month held a reception to affirm their support for the human rights of GLBTI Pakistanis, while we are increasingly seeing the White House intervening to wielding diplomatic pressure when politicians in developing countries seek to use campaigns against sexual minorities to distract from more important issues.
The more gays and lesbians take their place in the mainstream of American life and in equivalent countries, the more their persecution the world over will begin to be treated with the same gravity as persecution based on ethnicity or religious affiliation.
At home, many gay and lesbian Americans have been frustrated about the pace of reform under Obama and his ‘read between the lines’ statements about his views “evolving” on marriage equality.
The reality is that the Democrats need to retain a number of key seats that are skittish about same-sex marriage to hold onto government at the 2012 election and hopefully regain a majority in both houses.
Between the lines Obama is saying, “give me until then and I will finish the job”.
But when Obama is making his strongest statements to date on GLBTI equality at the same time as he wrangles with Republicans to strike a deal to stop the US Government from defaulting on its debts which would risk sending its economy down the toilet, its hard to accuse him of treating our issues as low priority.
