Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Barack Obama was the first African-American president of the United States. He previously served as a U.S. senator from Illinois from 2005 to 2008 and an Illinois state senator from 1997 to 2004.
US Secretary of State nominee Antony Blinken has unveiled a shortlist of pro-LGBTQ+ commitments that the new Biden administration is pledging, in order to promote attitudes toward equality across the globe.
One of the chief pledges is a reversal on the ban on embassies flying rainbow flags during Pride Month. These had been banned by the previous administration, with former Secretary of Defence, Mark Esper, comparing them to Confederate flags, which are used to promote white supremacy.
Blinken also promised to appoint a new Special Envoy for the Human Rights of LGBTI Persons. The position was originally created in 2015 by Barack Obama, but was left unfilled after Randy Barry left the role in the early days of the Tr*mp presidency.