Dear John,

I hope this message finds you safe, healthy and connected to loved ones. Like many of you, here at OutRight we continue to anxiously follow the US Presidential Election, which has tremendous implications for LGBTIQ people across the world.

Over our 30-year history, OutRight has had a variety of relationships with US administrations. At times we have collaborated and encouraged progress. We have often spoken out to hold the US accountable. And over the past four years we have had to challenge and call out attacks on LGBTIQ and gender equality at home and globally, as well as frequent undermining of the multilateral spaces designed to protect human rights for everyone.

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are in the lead to be the next President and Vice President of the United States. If this result holds, and the current Administration’s attempts to hold on to power fail, this will bring in a leadership which is openly and actively supportive of LGBTIQ equality. The political shift in the US does not happen overnight or automatically change the actions of others. However, OutRight is hopeful that we will be able to welcome the US back into the network of allies dedicated to a world in which LGBTIQ people live free from discrimination and violence.

We look forward to working with this Administration to reestablish LGBTIQ rights as a core part of US foreign policy. We will also hold the Biden/Harris Administration accountable for an intersectional human rights agenda that values LGBTIQ people of color, immigrants, women and other vulnerable groups.

OutRight takes seriously our role as a watchdog, and we will not be deterred from fighting tirelessly for LGBTIQ rights, and human rights more broadly, regardless of who sits in the White House. 

Please join me on November 11th, at 9am PT / 12pm ET / 6pm CET, for an OutTalks webinar to discuss how the outcome of the US election will impact our movement for the human rights of LGBTIQ people around the world. I’ll be joined by leading LGBTIQ activists and experts and would love to gather in community with you as well.

Our work for LGBTIQ equality is far from over. Sixty-seven countries still criminalize same-sex relations, only five ban so-called “conversion therapy,” and we face rising extremism and authoritarianism around the world. Compounding these challenges, the COVID pandemic has had a disproportionately negative impact on LGBTIQ people around the world. Put bluntly, LGBTIQ people are not safe from discrimination or violence in any country. But here’s what gives me hope:

• OutRight will never waiver from building the future we know is possible: a world where all LGBTIQ people are free to be who we are, and love whom we choose.

• We are guided by a fierce commitment to end homophobia, transphobia, racism, sexism, and other forms of oppression that impact our diverse and intersectional  community and our allies.

• We pledge to increase our efforts to bring an LGBTIQ perspective to the struggle for strong and healthy democracies in the US and worldwide. 

• We have longstanding and strong partners – activists, advocates, diplomats, business leaders, volunteers, donors – thousands of people like you who understand the value of global solidarity and will stand with us no matter what comes next.

• We are creative and resilient, and we are in this fight for the long-haul, until each of us can live with dignity, free from harm. In fact, this weekend marks our 30th anniversary and we will be fighting for this shared vision for the next 30 years and beyond. For as long as it takes.

Thank you for being a crucial part of our global community. Together we are powerful, and we will support each other so that we not only survive, but thrive.

With deep hope and a staunch recommitment to human rights for all,


Jessica Stern
Executive Director

P.S. Please join us for our post-election webinar on November 11th and for our sixth annual global human rights conference, OutSummit, December 9-11. I look forward to seeing you there!