Hinsegin dagar í Reykjavík - aug. 2019, Síða 61

The United States and Iceland:
Milestones in
LGBTI Rights
Message from the U.S. Embassy to the People of
Iceland and visitors to Reykjavik Pride 2019

Our U.S. Embassy team is pleased to extend warm
greetings to the participants in Reykjavik Pride and to
congratulate Reykjavik Pride on your 20th anniversary!
The U.S. Embassy is a proud supporter of this festival
and of the LGBTI community in Iceland.
We’ve watched Reykjavik Pride grow to become one of
Europe’s most successful celebrations of LGBTI pride,
and we welcome Americans who have traveled to take
part. The U.S. Embassy will march in the Reykjavik Pride
Parade for the ninth consecutive year with our families
and friends.
Even as Reykjavik Pride celebrates this historic
milestone, the world is marking the 50th anniversary of
the Stonewall Uprising in New York City’s Greenwich
Village. Outrage over the police raid on the Stonewall
Inn is credited for launching the global fight for LGBTI
rights. As one activist put it: “In every gay pride parade,
every year, Stonewall lives.”
To reinforce the shared journey toward inclusion, the
Embassy sponsored Reykjavik Pride board members to
attend WorldPride in New York this summer. We are
optimistic that these Icelanders will build links to their
American counterparts that will strengthen our shared
quest for equality. We also will provide funding to make
Pride accessible to disabled participants and, once
again, we will support a family festival to provide a safe
and welcoming environment for LGBTI families.
The United States is also proud to join Iceland on the
Equal Rights Coalition, the first-ever intergovernmental
organization dedicated to the protection of LGBTI
persons worldwide. Our Secretary of State, Mike
Pompeo, has been clear that the United States stands
with people around the world in affirming the dignity
and equality of all, regardless of sexual orientation or
gender identity.
Even as we look back, the United States pledges to keep
looking forward and working with our Icelandic friends
on behalf of LGBTI rights everywhere in the world.
With warm regards from all the staff at the U.S. Embassy
in Iceland