By Brody Levesque (Washington DC) Sept 29 | In a speech given earlier this month to attendees at the Roosevelt Institute's Four Freedoms Medals Gala Dinner, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton stated: "(We) must condemn violence based on sexual orientation and gender identity.”
Clinton received the Four Freedoms Award, during the ceremony on Friday, September 11th, which was attended by Dutch Crown Prince Willem-Alexander and Princess Máxima. Secretary Clinton was praised by Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs Maxime Verhagen as, "a true defender of justice and human rights".
The prize is awarded by the Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute, which aims preserve the freedom ideals of US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. As Roosevelt's ancestors came from Zeeland, the award ceremony is held every other year in the Dutch town of Middelburg. Previous winners included the former South African President Nelson Mandela and Queen Juliana.
Addressing the ongoing campaigns of injustice and violence worldwide against the greater LGBT community, Clinton said;
"In country after country after country, young men and women are persecuted, are singled out, even murdered in cold blood, because of who they love or just based on claims that they are gay.”
"We are starting to track violence against the LGBT community, because where it happens anywhere in the world, the United States must speak out against it and work for its end,” Clinton continued, “Through our annual human rights report, we are documenting human rights abuses against LGBT communities worldwide. And we are seeking out partners at the United Nations such as Brazil, France, Sweden and the Netherlands to help us address these human rights abuses."
Earlier this year, in a reversal of the policies of the Bush administration, the Obama administration indicated that it would sign a United Nations declaration decriminalizing homosexuality.
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