SACRAMENTO — Equality California, the nation’s largest statewide LGBTQ+ civil rights organization, released the following statement from Executive Director Rick Chavez Zbur on Thursday, after California Attorney General Xavier Becerra was confirmed by the U.S. Senate to serve as the next U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services:
“For more than 20 years, my friend Xavier Becerra has stood shoulder-to-shoulder with our community, passing comprehensive hate crimes protections, securing funding for HIV research and treatment and advancing civil rights for LGBTQ+ people and the diverse communities to which we belong. Since we met during his freshman term in Congress, Xavier has been an unyielding champion for justice, regardless of the personal or political consequences. I have no doubt that he will bring that principled spirit to his new role as Secretary of Health and Human Services. “As a gay Latino living at the intersection of two communities devastated by COVID-19, I could not be prouder of or more grateful to Secretary Becerra for his service to our country during these trying times. And I am confident that his leadership will bring us all much-needed healing in the months and years to come.”
“For more than 20 years, my friend Xavier Becerra has stood shoulder-to-shoulder with our community, passing comprehensive hate crimes protections, securing funding for HIV research and treatment and advancing civil rights for LGBTQ+ people and the diverse communities to which we belong. Since we met during his freshman term in Congress, Xavier has been an unyielding champion for justice, regardless of the personal or political consequences. I have no doubt that he will bring that principled spirit to his new role as Secretary of Health and Human Services.
“As a gay Latino living at the intersection of two communities devastated by COVID-19, I could not be prouder of or more grateful to Secretary Becerra for his service to our country during these trying times. And I am confident that his leadership will bring us all much-needed healing in the months and years to come.”
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Equality California is the nation’s largest statewide LGBTQ civil rights organization. We bring the voices of LGBTQ people and allies to institutions of power in California and across the United States, striving to create a world that is healthy, just, and fully equal for all LGBTQ people. We advance civil rights and social justice by inspiring, advocating and mobilizing through an inclusive movement that works tirelessly on behalf of those we serve. www.eqca.org
