Between the president’s inaugural address call for equal rights
for gay Americans, his mention of Stonewall, and the high
profile presentation by poet Richard Blanco, a gay Latino, the
second swearing in of Barack Obama marks a watershed moment for
the LGBT community. The president’s mention of gay rights — same
sex marriage the obvious marker here — was met with joy by LGBT
and progressive activists in the Twittersphere. “Our journey is
not complete until our gay brothers and sisters are treated like
anyone else under the law – for if we are truly created equal,
then surely the love we commit to one another must be equal as
well,” he said in his address. Obama also made a pointed
reference to the place that marked the first public battle for
gay rights: “We, the people, declare today that the most evident
of truths – that all of us are created equal – is the star that
guides us still; just as it guided our forebears through Seneca
Falls, and Selma, and Stonewall.” Walter Shapiro,
@WalterShapiro, a columist f