Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese encouraged the Boston University lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community to spread awareness and work toward achieving equal rights, especially in light of the upcoming presidential election.
Solmonese, a BU College of Communication alumnus, spoke about gay rights and its role in today’s society to about 40 people at the Howard Thurman Center Thursday. BU’s LGBT organization, Spectrum, hosted the talk. The Human Rights Campaign is a national nonprofit organization that works for LGBT rights.
‘We stand now as a community in a very important place,’ Solmonese said. ‘We can elect a president who will help us move forward.’
Solmonese spoke on topics like marriage laws and said defeating Proposition 8, which would ban same-sex marriage in California, is ‘hugely important,’ because it could set the stage for other states to change marriage laws as well.
‘The fight for the marriage bill really comes back East,’ he said. ‘Connecticut just overturned the gay marriage ban, and other states like New York and New Jersey may soon consider changing their laws as well.’
Solmonese said he was happy with the Massachusetts law that allows same-sex marriage, and the public needs to appeal to Massachusetts and California to maintain the allowance. However, he admitted that ‘it is much easier said than done.’
Although passing anti-discriminatory legislation is important, Solmonese said LGBT community members should be out about their orientation because it contributes to tolerance.
‘People should be empowered to be out and open in places like the workplace,’ he said. ‘The idea in society that it is OK to be who you are is very powerful.’
Most students who attended the talk said they were supportive of the LGBT community and agreed with the speech’s message of fighting for equality.
‘He spoke about things that a lot of people can relate to,’ School of Management sophomore Brent Sugay said. ‘It is good to keep these issues visible and to keep the message out there.’
Awareness was an issue that several students said was important to them.
‘Advancement of LGBT rights is important,’ College of Arts and Science sophomore Alex Amadeo said. ‘Like with any other community, there is a need for their agenda to be promoted.’
Solmonese was eager to come back to BU and speak to the community, Spectrum Vice President Justin Touchette said.
‘We were contacted through his organization last year, but couldn’t coordinate it last year,’ he said. ‘We got in touch with him this year, and he was very willing to give a talk at BU.’
Solmonese admires BU for being welcoming and providing resources to students, he said after the talk that.
‘BU has great resources set up and has really made a commitment to being welcoming,’ he said. ‘I really got that sense when I came back here.’
Solmonese, who graduated from COM in 1987, said he chose to attend BU for its diversity, and is happy that it has only progressed since then.
‘Coming back to BU, I can see the diversity has increased,’ he said. ‘I can really see the difference in opinions and thoughts, and that’s really important.’
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