Democratic National Convention (DNC)
delegates gathering in Philadelphia on Thursday welcomed the first
openly transgender person to speak at a major party convention.
Sarah McBride, the Human Rights
Campaign's (HRC) national press secretary, was introduced by New York
Representative Sean Maloney, who is raising three adopted children
with his husband Randy Florke.
“My name is Sarah McBride, and I am a
proud transgender American,” McBride
told the crowd.
McBride recounted marrying her husband
as he battled a cancer diagnosis.
“For me, this struggle for equality
became all the more urgent when I learned that my future husband,
Andrew, was battling cancer. I met Andy, who was a transgender man,
fighting for equality and we fell in love. And yet even in the face
of his terminal illness, this 28 year old, he never wavered in his
commitment to our cause and his belief that this country can change.
We married in 2014 and just four days after our wedding, he passed
away.”
“Knowing Andy left me profoundly
changed. More than anything, his passing taught me that every day
matters when it comes to building a world where every person can live
their life to the fullest.”
McBride added that Hillary Clinton
understands “the urgency of our fight.”
“She will work with us to pass the
Equality Act, to combat violence against transgender women of color,
and to end the HIV and AIDS epidemic once and for all,” she said.
Today in America, LGBTQ people are
targeted by hate that lives in both laws and hearts. Many still
struggle just to get by. But I believe tomorrow can be different.
Tomorrow, we can be respected and protected. Especially if Hillary
Clinton is our president. And that’s why I’m proud to say that
I’m with her,” McBride said.
McBride also serves on HRC's steering
committee Trans United for Hillary.