Rep. Pappas, New Hampshire’s first openly gay member of Congress, will celebrate Pride with a series of events and outreach throughout the month of June
As Pride begins, Congressman Chris Pappas (NH-01), Co-Chair of the Congressional LGBTQ+ Equality Caucus and New Hampshire's first openly gay member of Congress, released the following statement, outlined several legislative priorities, and previewed plans to celebrate Pride throughout the First District:
"After more than a year of isolation, social distancing, pain, and loss, Pride 2021 could not have arrived at a better time to let us celebrate the importance of being together and of being ourselves," said Congressman Chris Pappas. "As a gay person growing up in New Hampshire, I wasn't always sure there would be a place for me. But Granite Staters welcomed me for who I am, and I could not be more proud to serve in Congress and fight for equality for LGBTQ+ individuals in New Hampshire and across the country. I look forward to participating in Pride events throughout the district in the coming month and continuing to advocate for legislation in Congress like the Equality Act to create a more just, inclusive future. I encourage everyone to get out and celebrate Pride however you choose."
Pappas is an original co-sponsor of the Equality Act, which he helped introduce in February, which prohibits discrimination based on sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity in areas including public accommodations and facilities, education, federal funding, employment, housing, credit, and the jury system. Specifically, the bill defines and includes sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity among the prohibited categories of discrimination or segregation. This passed the House in February.
In March, Pappas introduced the Gay and Trans Panic Defense Prohibition Act with Senator Edward Markey (MA), which would ban the use of "gay panic" and "trans panic" defenses in federal court. The bill would curtail the availability of gay and trans panic defenses that defendant's use to blame victims for the violence committed against them, a step that many in the LGBTQ+ and legal communities have been urging for years.
In response to comments from Supreme Court Justices Thomas and Alito undermining the Supreme Court's previous rulings that cleared the way for marriage equality, in October 2020 Pappas introduced a resolution with the Congressional LGBTQ+ Equality Caucus Co-Chairs and more than 100 of their colleagues affirming that the Supreme Court rightfully ruled on the issue, that same-sex couples have both the right to marry and to enjoy the benefits and protections provided by the government to married couples.
Pappas has also introduced legislation to support LGBTQ+ veterans by amending the VA's definition of "minority group member" to explicitly include lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Veterans. This legislation would authorize the VA's Center for Minority Veterans (CMV) to include these Veterans in their mission. This action will help LGBTQ veterans who face unique barriers to accessing care and benefits due to long term implications of Don't Ask Don't Tell.
In the 116th Congress, Pappas introduced the SERVE Act in response to the Trump Administration's discriminatory transgender military ban that threatened the military careers and benefits of more than 15,000 active duty servicemembers. The SERVE Act would be a critical step to protect the physical and emotional health of these veterans by ensuring they are not denied VA healthcare benefits if they receive an Other Than Honorable (OTH) or Entry-Level Separation (ELS) discharge because of their gender identity. It would also guarantee VA healthcare coverage for any veteran discharged under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" who has not yet requested to have their discharge papers corrected.
Last year, Pappas joined Reps. Quigley (IL-05), and Lee (CA-13) in sending a letter with 30 of their colleagues calling on the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to reassess an outdated and discriminatory policy that blocks members of the LGBTQ community from donating blood. In 2020, Pappas also introduced a resolution with Reps. Schiff (CA-28) and Maloney (NY-12) underscoring the need for policies governing blood and blood product donation to be grounded in science and based on individual risk factors that do not unfairly single out any group of individuals so that all those who can safely donate are able to do so.
Pappas and his staff will visit Pride events throughout the district this month including the City of Manchester and Somersworth Pride Flag raising, and engage in digital and social media events to raise awareness and amplify more LGBTQ+ voices. To learn more about upcoming events, sign up for Rep. Pappas's email newsletter here: https://pappas.house.gov/contact/newsletter-subscribe
Original source can be found here.
