By David Li, bostonese.com
In May 2012, I sent an email to President Obama at whitehouse.gov. In that email, I mentioned to him a documentary movie No Look Pass I saw at Harvard Square, and sent him link to my review article No Look Pass – A Sure Hit in Its Boston Premiere at Brattle Theatre, published on bostonese.com. A Chinese version of this article 《闭眼妙传》首映 哈佛女篮亚裔球星担纲主角 was published on the China Press Weekly and on bostonese.com.
I sent President Obama the film review as I know he is a basketball fan and also a graduate of Harvard Law School. This was the first movie I saw in two years, and I was deeply moved by Emily Tay’s story. I thought President Obama might be also interested in Tay’s story.
Yesterday morning, when I checked my gmail account, and there was an email titled Response to Your Message. To my surprise, it was an email response from President Obama on my email sent three months ago.
The following is a copy of the letter. A screen shot of the email is at top of this page.
August 7, 2012
Dear David:
Thank you for writing. From generation to generation, ordinary Americans have led a proud and inexorable march toward freedom, fairness, and full equality under the law. We must stand united to protect liberty and justice for all our citizens, and I appreciate your perspective on lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights.
Since I took office, my Administration has worked to broaden opportunity, advance equality, and level the playing field for LGBT people and communities. We have fought to secure justice for all under the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr., Hate Crimes Prevention Act, and we have taken action to end housing discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. We expanded hospital visitation rights for LGBT patients and their loved ones, and under the Affordable Care Act, we ensured that insurance companies will no longer be able to deny coverage to someone just because they are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender. Because we understand that LGBT rights are human rights, we continue to engage with the international community in promoting and protecting the rights of LGBT persons around the world. Because we repealed “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” gay, lesbian, and bisexual Americans can serve their country openly, honestly, and without fear of losing their jobs because of whom they love. And because we must treat others the way we want to be treated, I personally believe in marriage equality for same-sex couples.
More remains to be done to ensure every single American is treated equally, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. Moving forward, my Administration will continue its work to advance the rights of LGBT Americans. I have consistently called for the legislative repeal of the discriminatory Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). I have also urged Congress to pass the bipartisan Domestic Partners Benefits and Obligations Act, and a fully-inclusive Employment Non-Discrimination Act. Adoption rights must be secured for LGBT families, and we need to ensure our children are free to learn in supportive environments in school. For information about my commitment to preventing bullying and harassment, along with resources for those facing bullying, please visit www.WhiteHouse.gov/
Thank you, again, for writing. To learn more about my Administration’s efforts in pursuit of a Nation where all are equal, and all have the full and unfettered opportunity to pursue happiness and live openly and freely, please visit www.WhiteHouse.gov/lgbt.
Sincerely,
Barack Obama