Joe Solmonese Quotations

Signs that Ford may have capitulated to right-wing extremist groups are deeply troubling.

She saw justice as a birthright and lent her voice as a relentless advocate for all fair-minded Americans, gay or straight, black or white. We join the nation in mourning the loss of a great hero and give enormous gratitude for all that she's left behind.

I don't think it has anything to do with the subject matter.

Hate crimes send a message of fear, and Congress answered with a powerful law enforcement tool, ... Members of the House, Democrats and Republicans alike, historically signaled today that local law enforcement officials deserve the tools this bill would provide toward fighting the scourge of hate crimes.

I was certainly disappointed. But I would trade that Oscar for all the positive conversations that this movie spurred between parents and their gay children, or between employees and their gay co-workers. That impact transcends any accolades.

placate the far right instead of appealing to the fair-minded values of the American people.

Justice O'Connor was a voice of moderation and cast several votes to protect the GLBT community in recent years. Justice O'Connor's replacement should continue the model of fairness she and others have set. We join Republicans and Democrats alike in continuing to call on President Bush to nominate a justice who will keep the court balanced.

Judge Roberts as chief justice threatens decades of a federal court system tipped against equality.

It certainly, for me, raises the possibility that she's more fair-minded than our opponents are hoping.

You have this massive problem within the Catholic Church and the Church's response to it, in one sweeping gesture, seems to be 'we're going to travel around the country and ask people if they are gay',

The American government shouldn't be in the business of sidestepping anti-discrimination policies. This case didn't even address the military policy keeping recruiters at bay from thousands of patriotic Americans who want to serve but can't.

The American people deserve justice, not prejudice. With judges like Pryor on the courts of appeal, the Supreme Court is more important than ever.

We have a war raging in Iraq, we have a Gulf Coast that needs to be rebuilt, we have an economy barely hanging on. The last thing America wants is this Republican-controlled Congress spending time writing discrimination into the Constitution.

When the church makes gay men a scapegoat for paedophiles, it ignores one problem and creates another. It does nothing to keep children safe or punish criminals.

The real debate around this witch hunt isnt between us and the Vatican, its between the Vatican and the truth,

We have asked that Ford repudiate its relationship with this extremist group, reinstate its advertising of Jaguar and Land Rover and continue investing in organizations working for equality.

The fact that that she is so proudly a born-again evangelical Christian belonging to the Valley View Christian Church makes my blood run cold.

The conversation was more about the message and how to talk about the issues. I think that everyone in that room was committed to us on the issues.

With a Chief Justice who's been given a stamp of approval by the extreme right-wing, it's critical that the next Justice preserve a fair and balanced Court,

We asked them to disavow any relationship with the American Family Association. As a group, we were pretty united in our extreme disappointment at Ford's willingness to even take a meeting with this right-wing extremist group.

When others have shied away, our awardees have shown great commitment in their advocacy for equal rights, ... It is our pleasure to say, 'Thank you for never backing down. Today, we are closer to equality because of your work.'

Corporate America knows that treating employees fairly is not just the right thing to do, it's good for the bottom line,

Twenty-five years ago, there were no companies that offered same-sex domestic partner benefits. Today, there are more than 8,000. Twenty-five years ago, there were no states with laws that banned discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. Today, there are 16 that ban discrimination based on sexual orientation and/or gender identity. Twenty-five years ago, the Human Rights Campaign endorsed only one candidate for Congress. Last year, we endorsed 201. We were proud to have to opportunity to celebrate those and so many other benchmarks with some of our strongest allies in the fight for equality.

at the very least maybe she's sort of open to the idea of fairness.

Subtle changes can have drastic consequences for gay Americans looking to serve their country.

Fairness and equality wins out in corporate America.

Faith-based organizations have been partnering successfully with the government for years without the need to bypass civil rights laws in providing social services.

They said they'd take our requests under advisement.

If you go back to 1989, her answers around AIDS were forward thinking, and she said she believed gays and lesbians deserve the same civil rights, even though she was not for overturning sodomy laws, ... Those answers were not all that out of line with people who were inclined to be fair at that time and who developed into fair-minded individuals over the years.

As we review more and more documents, I think we're finding more evidence that Roberts would vote with the far-right wing of the court and against civil rights protections.

As we suspected, corporate America is well ahead of America generally in terms of extending basic rights to all people.

The Nov. 8 election is about defeating extremists' efforts to write discrimination into Maine law,

Congress should never fund discrimination with Americans' tax dollars,

It's critical that the Senate thoroughly examines her nomination and that she provide complete and candid answers,

By insisting on the dignity and respect every human being deserves, Parks boldly moved the country toward fairness.

It's deeply disappointing that the Supreme Court has taken a dangerous turn away from fairness for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Americans.

Any effort to appease a handful of vocal extremists backfired and offended millions of fair-minded consumers instead. At a time when corporate America leads on fairness, we hope Ford will shift back into drive.

The church is making gay men a scapegoat for criminal pedophiles.

The enormous growth we've tracked in fair employee policies proves that corporate America is making good on the old adage: what's good for business is good for America.

The Human Rights Campaign has been proud to be part of the enormous progress made on the road to equality over the last 25 years, ... While we have miles to go, the national dinner gave us an opportunity to look at the distance we've crossed.

The fight for fairness isn't over, and we won't give up. These amendments are part of a long-standing effort by the extreme right to eliminate any legal recognition for gay people and our families.

These initiatives would forever deny marriage to same-sex couples and roll back all the benefits and responsibilities they currently have under law.

Ford Motor Co. has a big public relations mess on its hands that it needs to clean up in short order.

It is unacceptable to pull the rug out from under hundreds of thousands of our neighbors living with HIV/AIDS and simply say your government is not there for you. We should be focusing on ways to improve these programs, not shoving them not the cutting room floor.

When a man walks into a bar, asks if it's a gay bar and starts shooting, there couldn't be any more glaringly obvious and enraging example that we need a uniform hate crimes law and that Congress has stubbornly failed to act.

What the Church is doing, to the outside observer who reads this, is immediately equating gay men with the abuse that is going on here that is perpetuating something that is absolutely not true.

The more we hear about John Roberts' record, the more disturbed we become. That he counseled President Reagan against using sound science to reassure a fearful nation is a concerning revelation.

It looks pretty clear that they have bowed to the American Family Association's demands.

There were very few people standing up for gay Americans 34 years ago, ... And most who did have evolved even more since.

I don't think there is any evidence to say that boycotts are particularly effective. All these groups do is alter reality and make people think they're effective.

Governor Schwarzenegger should actively fight against ballot initiatives that write discrimination into the California Constitution,

Gov. Romney, your personal political agenda is standing in the way of the hundreds of needy children in your state simply looking for a loving home.

Being out and open about our lives is not just for gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender people, but for everyone who cares about equality, ... These ten leaders for fairness represent millions of family members, people of faith, friends and co-workers who are helping make America fairer and more equal.