Hispanic National Bar Association Salutes President Obama For His Support Of Marriage Equality

WASHINGTON, May 14, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In a historic moment last week, President Barack Obama endorsed same-sex marriage, stating, "It is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same-sex couples should be able to get married." The President's endorsement comes at a crucial time in the struggle for marriage equality nationwide, and the HNBA commends President Obama for his public demonstration of support on this important issue.

The HNBA has long fully supported marriage equality, including having co-sponsored a resolution of the American Bar Association ("ABA"), which urged states to eliminate all legal barriers to same-sex marriage (ABA Resolution No. 111). The HNBA also recently joined an amicus brief filed in Gill v. Office of Personnel Management, a case before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit challenging the constitutionality of the federal Defense of Marriage Act ("DOMA"), which defines marriage as the legal union between one man and one woman. 

"The HNBA expresses its gratitude to President Obama for taking a public stance on this civil rights issue that is so important to our community," said Benny Agosto, Jr., HNBA National President. "In this day and age, it is no longer acceptable for a nation as great as ours to deprive a group of its citizens of a fundamental right, and the HNBA stands firmly with the President and all supporters of marriage equality."

Research shows there is widespread support among Hispanics for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender ("LGBT") equality. "The President's public support of marriage equality validates what many of us have known and believed deep in our hearts -- that the bedrock of this country is equal rights for all," said Robert Maldonado, Chair of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Section of the HNBA. "Hispanic gay couples are twice as likely as white gay couples to be raising children, and these parents have the same right to raise their children as a married couple as anyone else.  We thank President Obama for his courage." 

The HNBA urges all states and the federal government to support marriage equality.  For further information, please contact Robert Maldonado, Chair of the LGBT Section of the HNBA, at (212) 278-0509.

About the Hispanic National Bar Association

The Hispanic National Bar Association (HNBA) is an incorporated, not-for-profit, national membership organization that represents the interests of the more than 100,000 Hispanic attorneys, judges, law professors, legal assistants, and law students in the United States and its territories. From the days of its founding three decades ago, the HNBA has acted as a force for positive change within the legal profession. It does so by encouraging Latino students to choose a career in the law and by prompting their advancement within the profession once they graduate and start practicing. Through a combination of issue advocacy, programmatic activities, networking events and educational conferences, the HNBA has helped generations of lawyers succeed.

SOURCE Hispanic National Bar Association