[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 99 (Thursday, June 9, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2883-S2884]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          LEGISLATIVE SESSION

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the Senate will 
resume legislative session.
  The Senator from Maryland.


                        LGBTQI+ Pride Month 2022

  Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, this June marks 53 years since the attack 
on the Stonewall Inn and 52 years since the first pride parade was held 
in New York City. The Stonewall riots are widely recognized as the 
catalyst for the resurgence of the fight for lesbian, gay, bisexual, 
transgender, queer, and intersex--LGBTQI+--rights, and they were the 
first in a series of landmark events that would define the LGBTQ 
experience of the late 20th century.
  From the UpStairs Lounge arson attack to the devastating AIDS crisis, 
the community persevered through many harrowing ordeals. During this 
month, we recognize not only the struggles of the LGBTQ community but 
the triumphs, both big and small.
  Not nearly as well known, the UpStairs Lounge arson attack took place 
nearly 4 years after the Stonewall riots, on June 24, 1973. Patrons of 
the New Orleans bar, which primarily served as a safe meeting space for 
blue-collar gay men, noticed a fire in the front stairwell just before 
8 p.m. The fire spread rapidly, forcing patrons to flee to the rooftop 
and out the barred windows to escape. Unfortunately, this was not 
enough. Twenty-eight people lost their lives in the blaze, and four 
more succumbed to their injuries in the following days. This horrendous 
act would go on to become the deadliest attack on the LGBTQ community 
until the Pulse nightclub shooting in 2016, which claimed the lives of 
49 individuals. Both of these attacks took place during Pride Month, a 
month that celebrates love, acceptance, and community.

  The celebration of Pride Month also allows members of the LGBTQ 
community to reassert their rights to openly be their true selves and 
say: ``We are here. We are not going away.'' This message is especially 
important now, as the Supreme Court prepares to vote on potentially 
overriding Roe v. Wade, the decision that protects an individual's 
right to privacy and control over their own bodies. Justice Samuel 
Alito's reasoning in this argument, though not final, threatens an 
entire line of rights that the Court has inferred from the text of the 
Constitution over decades, including foundational protections for the 
LGBTQ people such as marriage equality, established in the 2015 
Obergefell v. Hodges decision.
  I am an original cosponsor of the Equality Act, S. 393, which would 
safeguard and protect equal rights for the LGBTQ individuals in areas 
including public accommodations and facilities, education, Federal 
funding, employment, housing, credit, and the jury system. I am also 
the lead sponsor of the resolution to eliminate the deadline for the 
ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment, which would strengthen the 
constitutional foundation for pro-LGBTQ legislation like the Equality 
Act.
  I strongly oppose action by the Supreme Court to take away the rights 
of Americans by overturning Roe or Obergefell or other cases like 
Griswold v. Connecticut, which guarantees the rights of families to 
have access to contraception and family planning.
  While I am proud that Maryland has, at the State level, protections 
in place to preserve the sanctity of same-sex marriage should these 
rights come under threat at a Federal level, such fundamental rights 
must be respected at the national level. As many have pointed out, 
Supreme Court decisions to overturn precedent have historically 
expanded individual rights, not taken them away.
  LGBTQ Pride Month is an integral part of our community here in 
Maryland. Parades and celebrations are taking place all across the 
State, from Salisbury to Cumberland. As an ally, I am committed to 
uplifting and supporting the LGBTQ voices. In particular, we must make 
a special effort to protect transgender children and their parents and 
safeguard their access to healthcare and social services during these 
challenging times.
  As extremism grows louder in many States, we must stand united and 
firm in the face of injustice and continue to proclaim that love has 
been and always will be love.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. King). The clerk will call the roll.

[[Page S2884]]

  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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