The Republican agenda is an obvious one: Distract from real issues by assaulting the most vulnerable. That’s why they have focused their hatred on the LGBTQ+ community.
After years of legislating book bans, curriculum censorship, bathroom restrictions and withholding medically needed gender therapy, their latest act is signature Republican cruelty: For a crucial trillion-dollar budget that would prevent a government shutdown, the GOP slipped in a measure to ban the display of Rainbow Flags at U.S.
embassies all over the world. This is not an act of mere symbolism. In too many countries, being queer is punishable by imprisonment or death.
Measures like this give a green light to violence and homophobia both at home and abroad. It places more LGBTQ+ people at tangible risk.