U.S. Representatives Sarah McBride of Delaware and Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania introduced a bill to sanction foreign officials who carry out anti-LGBTQ+ human rights abuses.
McBride and Fitzpatrick are joined by 119 members of Congress in sponsoring the bill which hopes to empower the U.S. “to hold individuals and entities accountable for egregious human rights violations committed against LGBTQI+ people around the world.”
In effect, the new bill, the Global Respect Act, would “direct the U.S. government to identify and sanction foreign persons who are responsible for torture, arbitrary detention, physical attacks, murder, and other flagrant abuses against LGBTQI+ individuals,” according to a recent press release. It would also require human rights reporting from the State Department, a practice which has been sidelined during the recent Trump Administration’s takeover. Other objectives of the legislation include strengthening coordination with foreign governments, civil society, and the private sector to prevent anti-LGBTQI+ persecution.
McBride, who is the first openly transgender person to be elected to Congress, noted in the release that consensual same-sex relations are criminalized in over 60 countries. “The Global Respect Act reaffirms a simple truth: no one should be targeted for who they are or whom they love,” she said. “This bill strengthens America’s voice on human rights.”
The bill follows the recent re- introduction of the Human Rights Defense Act from Rep. Robert Garcia of California and Senator Ed Markey of Massachusetts. This bill seeks to establish a Special Envoy to create “a United States global strategy to prevent and respond to criminalization, discrimination, and violence against LGBTQI+ people internationally,” according to LGBTQ Nation. “LGBTQ+ people here at home and around the world continue to face escalating violence, discrimination, and rollbacks of their rights,” said Garcia of the bill.
The Washington Blade reports that the global LGBTQ+ and intersex rights movement has seen a $50 million decrease in funding following the Trump Administration’s freeze on foreign aid funding. Together, these bills seek to create a reinforcement in the U.S. government on the country’s stance and protocols for human rights offenses worldwide as they pertain to LGBTQ+ rights.
Various civil rights organizations have endorsed the bill including Outright International, Organization for Refuge, Asylum and Migration, the Human Rights Campaign, Amnesty International USA, and Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights.
“Freedom and dignity should never depend on your zip code or who holds power in your country,” says McBride.
