The Associate Press reports the nomination of the first openly gay lawyer for an ambassador position. David Huebner, an attorney for the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) is said to be receiving Obamas nomination in the weeks to come.
Huebner, a graduate of Princeton University and Yale Law School, currently works in Shanghai handling international mediation and arbitration cases. Prior to working internationally, Huebner worked for GLAAD as an attorney, serving on the groups board. Huebner currently works with the group as a general counsel.
The decision to nominate a member of the LGBT community goes back to promises made during Obama’s Presidential campaign in 2007.
“At its core, this issue is about who we are as Americans,” Obama said. “It’s about whether this nation is going to live up to its founding promise of equality by treating all its citizens with dignity and respect.”
If approved by the Senate, Huebner will be Ambassador to New Zealand and Samoa.
For more information on the nomination or Obama’s involvement with the LGBT community, view the Associate Press article on google’s hosted news.
-Christopher Clevenger
