She's set to become the first transgender person confirmed to a federal position by the Senate.
While serving as Pennsylvania Secretary of Health, Dr. Rachel Levine called out LGBTQ+ discrimination with this powerful message…
While serving as Pennsylvania Secretary of Health, Dr. Rachel Levine called out LGBTQ+ discrimination with this powerful message…
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00:00To all LGBTQ young people, it is okay to be you, and it is okay to stand up for your rights and your freedoms.
00:14As for me, I have no room in my heart for hatred, and frankly, I do not have time for intolerance.
00:30Before I begin, however, with the daily updates, there is an important issue that I would like to address.
00:51I feel that I must personally respond to the multiple incidents of LGBTQ harassment and specifically transphobia directed at me that have been reported in the press.
01:04I want to emphasize that while these individuals may think that they are only expressing their displeasure with me, they are in fact hurting the thousands of LGBTQ Pennsylvanians who suffer directly from these current demonstrations of harassment.
01:24Your actions perpetuate the spirit of intolerance and discrimination against LGBTQ individuals, and specifically transgender individuals.
01:37It is only one month ago that the Supreme Court prohibited discrimination in the workplace due to sexual orientation and gender identity.
01:47But LGBTQ individuals can still be denied housing and public accommodations in most places in Pennsylvania that do not have local non-discrimination ordinances.
02:02In addition, the most vulnerable among us continue to suffer, including LGBTQ individuals of color, LGBTQ youth, LGBTQ seniors, and LGBTQ immigrants.
02:23Transgender women of color continue to not only be harassed, but are more likely to suffer violence and even murder.
02:32We have not made progress unless we have all made progress.
02:36It is in this space that these acts of intolerance live and where we need to continue to work against them.
02:45To the perpetrators of these actions, if your apologies are sincere, then I accept your apologies.
02:55But an apology is the beginning, not the end, of the conversation.
03:00I call on you and all Pennsylvanians to work towards a spirit of not just tolerance, but a spirit of acceptance and welcoming towards LGBTQ individuals.
03:13We all need to foster that spirit of acceptance and welcoming to LGBTQ individuals and celebrate the wonderful diversity of our Commonwealth.
03:26Our children are watching. They are watching what we do and they are watching how we act.
03:33And to all LGBTQ young people, it is okay to be you and it is okay to stand up for your rights and your freedoms.