President Joe Biden on Friday signed new legislation formally establishing a National Pulse Memorial at the site of the Orlando, Fla., nightclub where a gunman opened fire in 2016, killing 49 people in the deadliest attack on the LBGTQ community in U.S. history.
“Just over five years ago, the Pulse nightclub, a place of acceptance and joy, became a place of unspeakable pain and loss,” Biden said at a White House ceremony, shortly before signing H.R. 49 into law. “We’ll never fully recover, but we’ll remember.”
As he signed the legislation, Biden was flanked by survivors of the shooting, victims’ family members, as well as members of the Florida congressional delegation and Congressional Equality Caucus.
“May no president have to sign another monument like this,” Biden said, calling the Pulse memorial a “monument to the loss that occurred” and “an absolute determination that we’re going to deal with this every single solitary day, and make sure that we’re not in a position to see this happen again.”
But the day was about more than mourning: Biden also used the White House event to highlight legislation to protect LBGTQ rights in the U.S., and to mark progress his administration has made so far.
Outside the East Room, the hallways were lit with rainbow colors in celebration of Pride Month, and a military orchestra played songs including “Tonight” from the musical “West Side Story.”
“Pride is back at the White House,” Biden declared.
He continued: “Pride Month represents so much. It stands for courage. The courage of all those in previous generations and today who proudly live their truth. Stands for justice. Both the steps we’ve taken and the steps we need to take. And above all, Pride Month stands for love.”
Biden also denounced a recent spate of state-level anti-LBGTQ legislation, which he called “some of the ugliest, most un-American laws I’ve seen,” and reissued calls for the Senate to pass the Equality Act.
Ahead of Biden’s remarks, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg spoke about his own journey in the military, and eventual journey to public office. Buttigieg is the first openly-gay, Senate-confirmed Cabinet member in U.S. history.
“Us even being here proves how much change is possible in America,” Buttigieg said. “So many lives have been changed, saved by the sustained advocacy, the moral resolve, the political courage of countless LGBTQ-plus leaders and allies, some elected, some invisible, some long gone, some in this room right now.”
Also on Friday, Biden announced the appointment of Jessica Stern as U.S. Special Envoy to Advance the Human Rights of LGBTQI+ Persons at the State Department.
Stern, who currently serves as executive director of an LBGTQ+ human rights organization, OutRight Action International, is the second person to hold the role. Her predecessor, Randy Berry, occupied the position from 2015 to 2017, before it was left vacant under President Trump.
As envoy, Stern’s responsibilities will involve ensuring that U.S. diplomacy and foreign assistance promote and protect LGBTQ rights around the world. Stern is currently executive director of OutRight Action International, which defends human rights and works to prevent abuses of LGBTQ people.
In her new role, Stern will help put in place a presidential memorandum to advance the rights of LGBTQ people as well as bring together like-minded governments, nonprofits and corporations to uphold equality and dignity, according to the White House.
