Bidens offer 'joy' at White House Pride event as LGBTQ attacks mount

11/6/2023 6:28

        U.S. President Joe Biden on Saturday hosted the largest Pride celebration in White House history on Saturday, calling for new measures to protect the
        rights and safety of LGBTQ+ people amid a spate of what he called "terrifying" attacks and legislation.
        
        Biden, a Democrat, urged Congress to pass the "Equality Act" which would amend the 1964 Civil Rights Act to include sexual orientation and gender identity for protection alongside race, religion, sex and national origin, and ban assault weapons.
        
        Thousands of guests picnicked on the South Lawn including Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, the first openly LGBTQ person to hold a Cabinet position, and Assistant Secretary of Health and Human Services Admiral Rachel Levine, the first openly transgender person to be confirmed by the Senate.
        
        Biden said the guests also included survivors of deadly shootings at the LGTBQ Club Q nightclub in Colorado Springs last November and Pulse, a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, in 2016.