This is massive epic win for humans everywhere. From the Associated Press:
GENEVA -- The United Nations issued its first condemnation of discrimination against gays, lesbians and transgender people on Friday in a cautiously worded declaration hailed by supporters including the United States as a historic moment.
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"You just witnessed a historic moment at the Human Rights Council and within the U.N. system with a landmark resolution protecting human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people," U.S. ambassador Eileen Chamberlain Donahoe told reporters after the vote.
full article here:
http://www.google.com/...
Daniel Baer, U.S. deputy assistant secretary, said this after the vote:
"If you look at the history of human rights and the ever expanding circle of who counts as human, every time that circle has expanded there have been those that have dissented and in every case they have been proven wrong over time,"
Excerpt from Reuters:
The top U.N. human rights body declared on Friday there should be no discrimination or violence against people based on their sexual orientation, a vote Western countries called historic but Islamic states rejected.
The controversial resolution marked the first time that the Human Rights Council recognised the equal rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, diplomats said.
Reuters article here:
http://af.reuters.com/...
Huge huge huge! :) :) :)
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on passage of the resolution (h/t Agence France Presse):
"This represents a historic moment to highlight the human rights abuses and violations that lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people face around the world based solely on who they are and whom they love...Today's landmark resolution affirms that human rights are universal. People cannot be excluded from protection simply because of their sexual orientation or gender identity,"
More important info about the resolution from The Sri Lanka Guardian:
The resolution requests the High Commissioner for Human Rights to prepare a study on violence and discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, and calls for a panel discussion to be held at the Human Rights Council to discuss the findings of the study in a constructive and transparent manner, and to consider appropriate follow-up.
“That we are celebrating the passage of a UN resolution about human rights violations on the basis of sexual orientation is remarkable, however the fact that gender identity is explicitly named truly makes this pivotal moment one to rejoice in,” added Justus Eisfeld, Co-Director of GATE. “The Human Rights Council has taken a step forward in history by acknowledging that both sexual and gender non-conformity make lesbian, gay, trans* and bi people among those most vulnerable and indicated decisively that states have an obligation to protect us from violence.”
full article here:
http://www.srilankaguardian.org/...