The formation of the Human Rights Campaign Fund was a response to the success of such right-wing organizations as the Moral Majority and the National Conservative Political Action Committee, which had raised large sums of money and provided other support for anti-gay political candidates.

Sponsor Message.

Because it is composed largely of white, affluent, and assimilated males, the Human Rights Campaign has sometimes been criticized as unrepresentative of the glbtq community. In addition, it has often been seen as arrogant and unresponsive to local issues and concerns. Still, the Human Rights Campaign has become the most influential voice of the national glbtq movement for equal rights.

Human Rights Campaign Dinners

From the beginning, the HRC has been committed to mainstream political advocacy and organizing. Key to its attempt to put a "respectable" face on groups that were frequently considered fringe at best or disreputable at worst is its strategy of holding gala fundraising dinners in fashionable hotels, featuring big-name speakers.

In the beginning, many of these speakers often seemed uncomfortable appearing before predominantly gay and lesbian audiences. In 1982, for example, former Vice President Walter Mondale spoke to an HRCF fundraiser at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City, and quickly exited after delivering a canned campaign speech. While he barely mentioned the subject of glbtq rights, his appearance nevertheless recognized the legitimacy of HRCF and the potency of its ability to generate money for political candidates.

Since then, HRCF and HRC dinners--held in most major cities in the United States--have attracted a wide range of celebrities, human rights figures, and politicians, ranging from Coretta Scott King and Elie Wiesel to Vice President and Tipper Gore and Congressman John Lewis.

In 1997, President Bill Clinton accepted the HRC's invitation to appear at a dinner, thus becoming the first president to speak publicly before a glbtq rights group. Clinton pointedly compared his address at the HRC dinner to President Truman's 1947 appearance at an NAACP meeting.

Endorsements

In the early history of the organization, some candidates repudiated its endorsement, sometimes even returning checks. These days, however, most Democratic and moderate Republican candidates welcome the endorsement of the Human Rights Campaign, both for the money an endorsement generates and for other help, including volunteers, that the organization provides for candidates in key races.

Some of the Human Rights Campaign endorsements have proved controversial, however. In 1998, for example, using a formula that favored the endorsement of incumbents, the organization endorsed Republican New York Senator Alphonse D'Amato, whose support of gay rights was spotty at best, over his Democratic challenger Representative Charles Schumer, whose record on glbtq issues was by any measure far stronger.

The endorsement created an uproar and led to a number of resignations. The fact that Schumer, in defeating D'Amato, received a large percentage of glbtq votes made the HRC endorsement even more embarrassing to the organization. In reaction, HRC claims to have changed its endorsement procedure to be more responsive to the opinions of local activists.

Although the HRC attempts to endorse candidates from both parties, most of its endorsements have gone to Democrats, if for no other reason than more Democrats have been supportive of glbtq issues than Republicans. HRC's first presidential endorsement went to Bill Clinton in 1992. President Clinton also received the organization's endorsement in 1996, as did Vice President Gore in 2000.

Lobbying

Now firmly ensconced as a major contributor to political campaigns, HRC is also a major lobbying organization. In 1985, the HRCF merged with the Gay Rights National Lobby in order to strengthen its effectiveness in the area of lobbying.

Among its legislative concerns are job discrimination protection, hate crimes legislation, AIDS policy and lesbian health issues, and judicial appointments. The organization is credited with having defeated a number of anti-gay bills and amendments on a variety of issues, and with helping derail the 1987 United States Supreme Court nomination of noted Robert Bork.

In addition to its political lobbying, the organization also lobbies corporations and other employers to adopt fair employment policies, including domestic partner benefits. It issues an annual "Corporate Equality Index" that reports on the practices of leading companies in regards to their treatment of glbtq employees.

Coming Out Project

In the belief that only by coming out can glbtq people attain sufficient visibility to achieve equality, the Human Rights Campaign has promoted coming out as a political as well as a personal activity. On October 11, 1988, it celebrated the first National Coming Out Day to commemorate the anniversary of the 1987 March on Washington. Since then, October 11 has been an annual day of celebration and lobbying.

An extension of the organization's National Coming Out Day is its National Coming Out Project. This project, fronted by Candace Gingrich, promotes honesty and openness about being gay, lesbian, bisexual, or on campus, in the workplace, and in the community.

Conclusion

The Human Rights Campaign has emerged as the leading national organization that speaks out on behalf of glbtq concerns and interests. Its leaders--Steve Endean, 1980-83; Vic Basile, 1983-89; Tim McFeeley, 1989-95; and Elizabeth Birch, 1995-2003--have been media-savvy coalition builders who have worked to ensure a voice for glbtq people in the corridors of power. In November 2003, Massachusetts state senator Cheryl Jacques was tapped to succeed Elizabeth Birch as head of the organization; she is expected to continue HRC's tradition of high-profile activism.

Anti-discrimination statutes and ordinances have made a real difference in the lives of millions of glbtq individuals.

Boycotts, the refusal to patronize companies or institutions, have in recent decades been organized by glbtq rights advocates to protest discriminatory practices and policies.

"Coming out" is the revelation or acknowledgment that one is a member of a sexual minority, a process that is at once personal and social and often political.

Members of the Deaf community, which defines deafness not as a disability but as a separate culture with its own vibrant vernacular, have organized an international support network of glbtq Deaf people.

"Domestic partnership" is the generic term for a variety of forms of legal and institutional recognition of same-sex couples that fall short of same-sex marriage.

In the United States, glbtq candidates have achieved some significant successes at the ballot box in the last three decades, running for and winning local, state, and national elections.

The U.S. gay rights movement has made significant progress toward achieving equality for glbtq Americans, and in the process has become more inclusive and diverse, but much remains to be done.

Hate Crimes are crimes towards persons or groups motivated by the victim's race, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, and gender identity.

Throughout the year, the glbtq community unites in pride and in protest, in recognition of a rich heritage and in hope for the future.

Marches on Washington in support of the rights of glbtq people have been a significant part of the modern movement for equality.

The site of contentious battles for glbtq rights, Miami is home to a vibrant glbtq community; as is Key West, which has a long tradition of celebrating diversity.

The New Right, which emerged during the last two decades of the twentieth century, combines evangelical Christian morality with a political agenda in opposition to glbtq equality.

The various symbols of glbtq pride render marginalized communities visible and assert self-esteem in the face of discrimination and oppression.

Although work remains to be done, the expansion of protection from workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation stands as one of the significant accomplishments of the American lesbian and gay civil rights movement.

Closeted throughout his professional basketball career, John Amaechi is the first player from the National Basketball Association to acknowledge that he is gay; since coming out, he has become an eloquent spokesman for glbtq rights.

American activist Virginia Apuzzo has dedicated her life to gay and lesbian issues, including civil rights, health care, and the concerns of aging members of the glbtq community.

Elizabeth Birch, former executive director of the Human Rights Campaign, has been a visible and effective spokesperson on a wide array of issues of concern to the glbtq community.

The American glbtq movement for equality has largely allied itself with the Democratic Party.

The Empire State Pride Agenda, which lobbies New York governments at both state and local levels for equal rights, is recognized as among the strongest statewide glbtq political organizations in the United States.

Steve Endean, one of the most important glbtq activists of the post-Stonewall era, stirred controversy within and outside gay politics in his conviction that "mainstreaming" the movement was the way for glbtq Americans to achieve equality.

Equality California (EQCA) is one of the largest and fastest growing statewide glbtq advocacy and civil rights organizations in the United States.

American pianist and singer Michael Feinstein has had a lifelong fascination with the popular music of the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s.

Founder of the Gill Foundation, computer entrepreneur and philanthropist Tim Gill has used his wealth to benefit the glbtq community.

Candace Gingrich, the half-sister of former Speaker of the United States House of Representatives Newt Gingrich, serves as a spokesperson and Senior Youth Outreach Manager for the Human Rights Campaign.

Once best known as a youthful actor, Sheila James Kuehl is now a respected California state legislator and a vigorous advocate for glbtq rights.

The oldest continuously operating national glbtq interest group, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force has played a significant role in the development of the glbtq movement for equal rights.

Jean O'Leary devoted her life to activism for gay and lesbian rights.

The Republican Party of the United States has not been supportive of glbtq issues, despite the efforts of the Log Cabin Republicans.

Best known for his role as Mr. Sulu on the cult-classic television series Star Trek and subsequent films, George Takei has, since coming out as a gay man, also been an articulate advocate for glbtq rights.

Financial writer Andrew Tobias, the author of the classic coming out memoir The Best Little Boy in the World (1973), was elected Treasurer of the Democratic Party in 1999.

Charismatic performer and activist Robin Tyler has spent much of her life enmeshed in the struggle for gay and lesbian rights, from planning national marches to promoting same-sex marriage.