Today, LGBT community leaders from around the nation released a letter detailing their support for Presidential candidate, Senator John Edwards.

The letter (pdf) is below (further thoughts from me below that):

Dear Friends:

The 2008 Presidential elections offer our country and our community a chance to makehistory, by fundamentally restructuring American politics from the White House to the statehouse. That is why we are supporting Senator John Edwards for President and hope that you will consider joining us.

As the Democratic presidential nominee, John Edwards would represent nothing less than the chance to alter the conventional foundations of American politics. Edwards demonstrates strong leadership, not only on the critical issues facing the LGBT community, but also by offering bold ideas like guaranteeing universal health care to every man, woman and child in this nation, ending poverty in this country during our lifetime, and stopping global warming while creating hundreds of thousands of quality American jobs in a new energy economy. As the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee Edwards will run a 50-state campaign- helping to strengthen Democratic officials, not only in traditionally “blue” states, but also in “battleground” and “red” states.

Edwards’ “policy ideas are shaping the Democratic presidential race.”
The Economist- July 19, 2007

Edwards’ bold leadership on the critical issues, both on those unique to our community and those that transcend all communities, has set the policy agenda for this election, making it safe for others to follow. Edwards was the first candidate to offer a truly
universal health care plan, the first candidate to offer a comprehensive global warming proposal, and the first to offer a comprehensive HIV/AIDS strategy. Early on, Edwards accepted responsibility and apologized for his vote to invade Iraq, and he has consistently called upon Congress to stand up to President Bush to force an end to the war.

I am the candidate running for president on the Democratic side who’s actually won an election in a red state running against the Jesse Helms political machine.
John Edwards- “Meet the Press” October 7, 2007

Edwards is the Democrat with the best chance to regain the White House against all of the top Republican candidates and offers the best chance to help Democrats get elected in some of the toughest races in the country because of his appeal in traditionally “red” areas. According to Doug Shoen, former pollster for President Bill Clinton, Edwards is “the strongest individual match up” against Republicans in the general. Edwards puts into play states where Democrats running for president have not competed in years. For example, his strength in places like Kentucky, Missouri and Oklahoma, will help

Democrats competing in tight races, including for control of governorships and legislatures, control of which may mean more to LGBT Americans than most. While members of the LGBT community are by no means single-issue voters, you may be asking yourself what all of this has to do with the LGBT community and our agenda.

As most of us now realize, almost all of the victories for our community have been at the state and local level. These victories are largely due to the hard work, persistence and talent of LGBT statewide organizations and their allies. Because these activists devoted their lives to educating their neighbors and elected representatives, we have marriage in Massachusetts, civil unions in New Jersey, Vermont, California, New Hampshire and Connecticut, and laws providing workplace equality, safe schools, protection from hate crimes and domestic partnership registries in dozens of states and local municipalities.

As members of the LGBT community, we are supporting John Edwards for President because if we want to continue to see this kind of progress in the states and to see the bills that we all have worked so hard to get enacted, we need to maintain the majorities Democrats hold in statehouses and build new ones. And there is only one candidate with a 50-state plan who can ensure that we capitalize on the opportunities we have across the nation. That candidate is John Edwards.

Eric Stern, Former National Stonewall Democrats Executive Director

David Mixner, Former Bill Clinton for President Adviser

Dan Hinkley, Nevada Stonewall Democratic Caucus President

John A. Pérez, Democratic National Committee Member

Sal Rosselli, SEIU California State Council President, former Alice B. Toklas Club President

Linda Elliott, Human Rights Committee Board of Directors Member

David Tseng, Kerry-Edwards 2004 National LGBT Advisory Committee Co-Chair

Skip Paul, Corporate Executive

Jenny Durkan, Washington LGBT Community Leader

Scott Benson, Majority Leader Minneapolis City Council

Kenda Kirby, former Executive Director of North Carolina Human Rights Initiative

Ian Palmquist, Equality North Carolina, Executive Director

Eric Marcus, Author and Gay Activist

Scott Wiener, Human Rights Campaign Board of Directors Member

Ken Keechl, Broward County Commissioner; Former Dolphin Democrats President

Ron Ginsburg, LGBT Community Activist

Gregory G. Simoncini, Commissioner of Illinois Human Rights Commission

Jeff Gardner, Vice Chair of Garden State Equality

James Duff, TV Producer

Robert D. Horvath, Mautner Project Board of Directors Member

Patrick J. Lyden, LGBT Community Activist; Homeland Security Advisor

Kevin Jennings, New York LGBT Community Activist

Stephen Handwerk, Board Member of National Stonewall Democrats

Jeff Anderson, Former Co-Chair of John Kerry for President National LGBT Finance Committee

Jeff Soukup, Former President and COO, PlanetOut Inc.

Andy Szekeres, Former Colorado Stonewall Co Chair

Sean Kosofsky, Michigan LGBT Community Leader

Mark Periello, Former Human Rights Campaign staff member

Kyle Bailey, Board member of National Stonewall Democrats

Hans Johnson, President of Progressive Victory

Todd Elmer, Former Clinton Administration Commerce Department Official

Les Krambeal, Board member of National Stonewall Democrats

Leslie Giblett, Washington LGBT Community Leader

Alexis Pontikis, Washington LGBT Community Leader

Gregg Gallo, National Stonewall Board Members

David Mariner, Former Out for Howard Dean Co-Chair

Matt Comer, LGBT Journalist

*Organizations listed for identification purposes only

As you can plainly see, I was a signatory of the letter.

Many of you may have read my Tuesday post, “Obama: Stand up for what is right.”

In that post I detailed my feelings and concerns over Senator Barack Obama’s “Embrace the Change” gospel tour, and specifically, the concert featuring ex-gay Donnie McClurkin in Columbia, S.C. In the post, I also published a letter I sent to the Obama campaign (excerpt):

I am a person who was deeply hurt (and continues to hurt daily) from being raised in a church and religious setting that taught gay and lesbian people should be put to death (”Put all the queers on a ship, pluck a hole into the side of it and send it out to sea,” my preacher would say).

I cannot support any person – whether that be a Presidential candidate or a city council candidate – who helps to give even the slightest hint of credibility to an idealogical viewpoint that is very closely linked to the real and ever-present spiritual violence I was exposed to as a youth. I was a gay adolescent attempting to come to terms with myself, my God, my church, family, community and society. People like Donnie McClurkin never made it easier.

I understand that the Senator wants to reach out to as many people as possible. I do understand that. I’m not totally inept when it comes to politics and I know (perhaps not as much as the Senator) how the game is played: Reach out to the most people without compromising one’s own values, get the most votes and win an election.

Unfortunately, Sen. Obama will have to make a decision. Does he sacrifice the votes of black evangelicals who will be turned off by his support of LGBT people and their right to exist (literally, their right to exist)? Does he try to play both angles reaching out to LGBT people and telling them they do have the right to exist while at the same time reaching out to a group who think that I should be invisible, “converted,” guilty of a crime or, at worst, put to death?

At the beginning of the election season, I fervently supported both Sen. Edwards and Sen. Obama. In fact, I even put little buttons here on my site for both of them. Those buttons are long gone, but they remained on the site containing more personal, professional information about me (www.matthillcomer.com). I have since removed the button for Obama.

I have also removed from myself – from my heart and soul – any support I once held for Sen. Obama’s campaign for the Presidency. Because Sen. Obama chose to honor and lend his credibility to a leader of a movement I find immensely dangerous to me, my brothers and sisters in the LGBT community and to all of America, I can no longer support him.

Sen. Obama has, unfortunately, chosen to honor his desire for votes over his obligation to stand for equality. He has chosen to honor religion strife with lies, hypocrisy, prejudice and hate over his obligation to speak out for the inherent worth and dignity of every person.

His attempts to balance respect and equality for LGBT Americans with the hate and exclusion of those who stand utterly opposed to LGBT equality are lame and offensive. Furthermore, his pandering and “vote-getting” behavior is nothing less than political posturing simply for the sake of winning.

As the young high school student told Sen. John McCain: I wanted to see a leader, but I don’t see one here.

Senator Edwards, on the other hand, is the only candidate who has continuously stood up for the respect and equality of LGBT people. I respect that Sen. Edwards can say he is “not quite there yet” and temper that with a policy position that, unlike other candidates, has not pushed entirely closed the door to full equality on the issue of marriage. Also, Sen. Edwards has not attempted to lie down with those who, if they had there way, would like to see nothing less than the disappearance of every LGBT person on the globe.

As for non-LGBT related issues, I agree most with Sen. Edwards’ plans for healthcare, poverty, education and domestic affairs. He is a candidate who most represents my views and one who respects me and my personhood.

Furthermore, just as Sen. Obama shows no regret over his pandering to a hate and prejudice filled movement, I am not regretful in the least over my separation from supporting the Obama campaign.

In the North Carolina primary, my vote will be going to Sen. John Edwards – a candidate who fully supports me, my community and our dignity and worth.

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