Brooklyn, N.Y. – Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke released the following statement in honor of LGBT History Month, which starts today:

“On behalf of the people of the Ninth Congressional District of New York, I am honored to join in celebrating LGBT Pride Month and the millions of people who courageously raised their voices in support of social justice and equality for all individuals, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. Today, we have much to celebrate. We have achieved marriage equality in more than thirty-five states, and the recent oral argument in Obergefell v. Hodges indicates that the number of states with marriage equality might very soon reach all fifty. Activists here in Brooklyn have always been leaders in this effort to create a democracy in which all people are included, and I am certain that their prominent role will continue in the future.  Our efforts to organize people of good faith across the United States must continue as we work to create a society in which we honor the best of our traditions as a people. I remain committed to passing the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, to protect every worker in the United States from the threat of discrimination.”

Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke is a member of the Committee on Energy and Commerce in the House of Representatives, a member of the Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade, the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology, and the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, as well as the Committee on Ethics and the Committee of Small Business. She represents many neighborhoods in central and southern Brooklyn, NY which include Brownsville, Crown Heights, East Flatbush, Flatbush, Gerritsen Beach, Madison, Midwood, parts of Park Slope and Flatlands, Prospect Heights, Prospect-Lefferts Gardens, Sheepshead Bay, and Windsor Terrace.