Gillespie’s record mirrors Trump Administration’s record of erasing LGBTQ Americans from fabric of this nation

NEW YORK – GLAAD, the world’s largest LGBTQ media advocacy organization, today called on all media outlets following Ed Gillespie to consider reporting on his troublesome anti-LGBTQ record, which includes discriminatory statements and actions against the community.

Gillespie has been described as a “moderate” politician, however, his record tells a different story. In fact, Gillespie’s actions prove to be eerily similar to President Trump’s erasure agenda on LGBTQ Americans – including his call for North Carolina-like policies that would directly put transgender Virginians in harm’s way.

With this discriminatory and harming record following Ed Gillespie, it should come as no surprise that he could embrace the same anti-LGBTQ record that has embodied the Trump Administration since Day One of the Trump Presidency. This includes Gillespie’s own push for anti-transgender legislation and opposition to marriage equality for LGBTQ Americans – directly in line with top officials within the Trump Administration. Take a look below at how Ed Gillespie’s record could harm LGBTQ Virginians in the future.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION: ED GILLESPIE ANTI-LGBTQ RECORD

Opposition to Marriage Equality

• Opposes marriage equality: “‘I believe in my faith,’ which says marriage is between a man and a woman, he said. ‘So I don’t believe in government sanction of same-sex marriage.’”
• While chair of the Republican Party, called on the GOP to “pursue whatever policy is necessary” to stop marriage equality: “The Republican Party platform is clear: We believe marriage is the legal union of one man and one woman. We must pursue whatever policy is necessary to protect this institution, including a Federal Marriage Amendment to the United States Constitution.”
•  Reportedly pressed former president George W. Bush to add extra lines to a 2008 commencement speech that explicitly condemned marriage equality.
• As senior adviser to Mitt Romney’s 2012 presidential campaign, advocated for a federal marriage amendment.
•  Classified judicial rulings on marriage equality as “unhealthy”: “We’ve had courts injecting themselves into this decision making process, into the political process, in a way I think is generally unhealthy for unelected judges to make decisions about whether or not government should sanction gay marriage or not.”
   

Support of Anti-Trans Measures/Policies

•  Advocated for North Carolina–styled “bathroom bill.”
• His campaign derisively said of his position on transgender bathroom access: “Ed doesn’t think girls should be compelled to share a locker room shower or hotel room on an overnight band trip with boys.” Gillespie believes that parents and local school boards should “enact common-sense policies to protect the safety and privacy of our children.”
   

Claimed Being LGBTQ as a “Choice”

• Once claimed LGBTQ people are making a “choice” and that asking for acceptance is “religious bigotry”: “I accept people for who they are – and love them. That doesn’t mean I have to agree or turn my back on the tenets of my faith when it comes to homosexuality. I think when people say, ‘Well, no. That’s not enough that you accept me for who I am, you have to agree with – and condone – my choice,’ that, to me, is religious bigotry, and I believe that’s intolerant. I think they are the ones that are crossing the line here.’”

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