House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, a
Democrat from California, on Saturday criticized President Donald
Trump's efforts to bar transgender people from serving in the U.S.
military.
Pelosi made her remarks at GLAAD's
annual gala in San Francisco on Saturday.
“We are so proud of San Francisco,
because our city is blessed with a large LGBTQ community, and a
strong history of advocacy for equal rights for all. People say to
me, ‘Oh, you’re from San Francisco, it’s easy for you to be so
tolerant.’ I say, ‘Tolerant?’ Tolerant is a condescending word
to me. This isn’t about tolerance, this is about respect,” she
said in presenting Y Combinator President Sam Altman with GLAAD's Ric
Weiland Award for advancing LGBT equality through tech and new media.
“We will also fight for equality in
our military. Like so many Americans, and certainly everybody in this
room, I was appalled when President Trump decided to ban transgender
men and women from serving in our Armed Forces. It’s a move that
hurts and humiliates the thousands of Americans who serve in our
military with strength and courage from the transgender community.”
“All of us must respect that
transgender Americans who have the patriotism and the bravery to
serve our country in uniform must be respected. We must fight to
ensure that all Americans can live authentic lives, full of dignity,
pride, and love,” she
added.
Pelosi also reiterated House Democrats'
commitment to passing the Equality Act, a stalled LGBT protections
bill.
(Related: Don
Lemon takes a swipe at Trump in accepting GLAAD award.)