Kamala Harris Will Probably be the Democratic Candidate - But Will She Defend LGBTQ+ Rights?

Now that Joe Biden has bowed out of November's presidential election, Kamala Harris will most likely be the Democratic nominee. But would she be an LGBTQ+ ally? The answer: Yes!

With Biden announcing he is stepping back from the upcoming election, Democratic leaders have been falling into line to offer their support to Vice President Harris. Leading LGBTQ+ equality advocacy organization the Human Rights Campaign has also stated its enthusiastic endorsement of Harris.

Harris drew some skepticism from the queer community in 2020, with some equality advocates criticizing her for a California state policy that denied trans prisoners gender affirmation care. although Harris has said she did not support that policy and that she promoted efforts that eventually led to such care being provided.

Harris also came in for criticism around proposed legislation that would have affected the use of websites by sex workers.

But those critiques pale in comparison to a strong and decades-long record of defending and upholding LGBTQ+ equality.

"Vice President Kamala Harris is a trailblazer and has been a champion for LGBTQ+ equality for decades," the HRC's statement endorsing Harris declared, "from leading the fight in San Francisco against hate crimes and her work in California to end the so-called gay and transgender 'panic defense' to her early support for marriage equality and her leadership serving as our Vice President."

Harris was front and center in the struggle for marriage equality when, in 2004, then-San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom made same-sex matrimony legal in the city. The state voided those marriages, however, and the voter-backed Proposition 8 outlawed marriage equality until the measure was overturned in court. Harris, at the time DA for San Francisco, lost no time in performing marriage ceremonies for same-sex couples. Later, as state attorney general, Harris stood up for the right to marry by declaring she would not defend Prop 8 when the measure was challenged in court.

As Biden's vice president, Harris has worked alongside the president to hold the line against escalating anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric and legislative action stemming from the GOP – something that Advocates for Trans Equality took note of in declaring its support for her candidacy.

Moreover, the HRC noted that "The Biden-Harris Administration has been the most pro-equality in history."

"In 2022, President Biden signed the Respect for Marriage Act into law, a landmark piece of legislation that codified federal protections for same-sex and interracial marriages," the HRC went on to add.

"They have issued new administrative rules protecting LGBTQ+ youth from discrimination and harassment in schools, ensuring LGBTQ+ youth are protected in the foster care system, and protecting LGBTQ+ patients from discrimination in health care."

"They have also filled the administration with members of the LGBTQ+ community, appointing a record 200+ LGBTQ+ people across each level of government and nominating a number of LGBTQ+ judges," the HRC continued.

There is every reason, based on her track record, to believe that as president, Harris would continue her trajectory as a defender of equal rights and protections for LGBTQ+ Americans, in stark contrast to conservatives' plans – outlined in "Project 2025," the Heritage Foundation's 900+-page blueprint for a second Trump presidency – to hobble voter access, restrict the rights of LGBTQ+ Americans, women, and other minorities, and promote a Christian Nationalist agenda.

The queer community has also shown its enthusiastic support for a Kamala Harris presidency, speedily creating memes and T-shirts that celebrate the prospect of her candidacy.

"Less than 24 hours after Vice President Kamala Harris announced she would run for president following Joe Biden's exit from the race, queer people flooded the internet with cheeky videos and memes" endorsing her, NBC News reported.

Memes are already in circulation that incorporate bits of a speech Harris gave on education in May of 2023, and Charli XCX immediately signaled her endorsement of a Harris candidacy with a tweet declaring "kamala IS brat" – a reference to the singer's hit album "Brat."

As EDGE reported at the time, "the tweet sparked a wave of support from the gays, and Harris' official campaign account promptly played along by changing its X account header to fit the Charli album theme."

The queer community showed it was on board. "A supercut of Harris laughing, set to a Charli XCX song from the album 'Brat,' quickly went viral, with more than 1.3 million views," NBC News recounted.

"Within hours of the announcement, photos and videos circulated of a group of men on Fire Island Pines, a queer-friendly beach on New York's Long Island, wearing cropped T-shirts in 'brat' lime green – the color of Charli XCX's album – with 'Kamala' emblazoned on the front in the same typeface used on the album."

With anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric on the rise, a homophobic conservative playbook only waiting for another Trump presidency, and GOP politicians demonstrating their willingness to roll back equality for the queer community, the stakes are high – and judging from her overall track record, a President Harris would be a strong ally.