Texas Congressman Ron Paul may soon have even more ammunition against American foreign aid. The White House has announced that it will use foreign aid to promote global rights for gays and lesbians.
President Obama made his intentions clear in a memo circulated yesterday, directing American agencies working abroad to use foreign aid to help homosexuals abroad who face human rights violations.
"I am deeply concerned by the violence and discrimination targeting L.G.B.T. [lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender] persons around the world," Obama averred in the memorandum, "whether it is passing laws that criminalize L.G.B.T. status, beating citizens simply for joining peaceful L.G.B.T. pride celebrations, or killing men, women and children for their perceived sexual orientation."
He also directed U.S. agencies to protect gay and lesbian refugees and those who are seeking asylum.
In a recent statement, the President observed, "The struggle to end discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons is a global challenge, and one that is central to the United States' commitment to promoting human rights."
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also spoke on the White House agenda at the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva.
"Some have suggested that gay rights and human rights are separate and distinct," she told the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, according the New York Times, "but in fact they are one and the same."
"In reality, gay people are born into — and belong to — every society in the world," she said. In countries "where people are jailed, beaten or executed for being gay," she called on leaders to leap ahead of their constituents' cultural or social mores, if necessary.
"I'm not saying that gay people can't or don't commit crimes," she said. "They can and do, just like straight people. And when they do, they should be held accountable. But it should never be a crime to be gay."
The New York Times reported:
The administration's announcement formalizes several steps that Mrs. Clinton has already ordered. She has asked American diplomats to raise the issue wherever harassment or abuse arises and required a record of them in the State Department's annual report on human rights. On Tuesday, she also announced a $3 million program to finance gay-rights organizations to combat discrimination, violence and other abuses.
The initiative followed a series of legal steps taken against homosexuals in countries such as Uganda, where the government has outlawed homosexuality and made it punishable by death.
The State Department's latest human rights report enumerates cases of violations against gays in dozens of countries.
The Associated Press indicates that Obama's directive applies to all agencies involved in foreign aid, assistance, and development, such as the Departments of State, Treasury, Defense, and Homeland Security.
According to The Blaze, despite the touted intent of such an initiative, the Obama administration has reelection in mind: "It comes as no surprise that many analysists believe that President Obama's outreach to gays and lesbians, a core Democratic constituency, is part of his 2012 reelection campaign."
