James C. Hormel, an American philanthropist, LGBT activist, and owner of Hormel Foods, a Fortune 500 multinational corporation, died on Aug. 13, 2021. He was 88 years old.
Hormel was the first openly gay person to serve as a U.S. Ambassador. He served at the U.S. Embassy in Luxembourg City, Luxembourg, from 1999 to 2001.
Hormel was a courageous person. He faced the hateful, oppressive, and anti-American politics of Washington in the 1990s. I know the viciousness of the era based on my experience with the federal bureaucracy and homophobic Sen. Jesse Helms (R-N.C.).
As a federal employee, I vocally supported non-discrimination policies and employment equality for LGBT federal employees. After I gave a speech on the subject at an Arlington, Va., conference, Helms tried to have me fired.
On July 19, 1994, Helms said LGBT federal employees and their straight allies like me had our minds in our “crotches.” He said LGBT federal employees and their straight allies like me were “perverts.” He said many more vile things that are preserved for history in The Congressional Record, July 19, 1994, and on C-SPAN.
I survived the Helms assault thanks to staffers for then-Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) and GOP contacts in other offices on Capitol Hill. The experience helped me to understand the oppressive and hostile work conditions that my LGBT colleagues faced. This made me a stronger ally.
In the 1990s, Hormel was brave to take on the anti-LGBT politicians in both political parties. In 1994, President Bill Clinton considered Hormel as ambassador to Fiji. After the Fijian government objected to his LGBT advocacy, Clinton reconsidered the Hormel nomination.
In 1997, Clinton nominated Hormel to be ambassador to Luxembourg. At that time, Helms chaired the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. In his memoir “Here’s Where I Stand,” Helms did not mention Hormel. He was, perhaps, concerned about his legacy. He may have realized that his homophobia would hurt funding for his Jesse Helms Center in Wingate, N.C., a suburb of Charlotte.
Hormel’s nomination lingered before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for two years. The committee never recommended Hormel’s nomination to the Senate for a confirmation vote. If Helms had been the visionary foreign policy leader his supporters claim, he would have advanced Hormel’s nomination.
Hormel said Helms went “easy” on him during the nomination process. Other senators, including Arkansas Sen. Tim Hutchinson, held up the Hormel nomination. In 1999, Clinton used his authority to give Hormel a recess appointment as ambassador to Luxembourg. Hormel served until Clinton left office in 2001.
In 2006, I relocated from Washington, D.C. to San Francisco. I lived there for 10 years. I met many cultural and political legends, including Sen. Dianne Feinstein, City Lights Bookstore owner/publisher Lawrence Ferlinghetti, former Bay Area Reporter (BAR) editor Paul Lorch, Pentagon Papers leaker Daniel Ellsberg, and former Ambassador James C. Hormel, among others.
I freelanced on evening assignments for the BAR. These assignments included several events where Hormel was a speaker or an attendee. During LGBT Pride Month, Hormel once spoke at an event for the Commonwealth Club of California (CCC). He spoke about the history of the LGBT rights movement. It was a small group of CCC members. We sat at a long table as Hormel spoke in his soft, yet commanding, voice as an LGBT historian and activist. It was like being in an LGBT history class with Hormel as the instructor. It was a priceless experience.
Among the other attendees was a representative of the Consulate General of Luxembourg’s San Francisco office. It was informative to hear Hormel and the representative of Luxembourg speak about the foreign service, the State Department, U.S. and European LGBT politics, and the Luxembourg people’s respect for Ambassador Hormel. It was clear from the conversation that Hormel had left a positive impression on the government and the people of Luxembourg. If every ambassador had the diplomatic skills of James Hormel, America would likely have better foreign relations and possibly more respect in the world.
In 2011, Hormel with Erin Martin published his memoir “Fit to Serve: Reflections on a Secret Life, Private Struggle, and Public Battle to Become the First Openly Gay U.S. Ambassador.” Venezuelan filmmaker and playwright Moises Kaufman said of Hormel’s book: “Future generations will look at this book and experience their history told honestly and courageously.” Novelist Richard North Patterson called “Fit to Serve”: “Rich, engrossing, and deeply affecting.” Patterson added: “In the truest sense, this is a great American story.”
I attended Hormel’s book discussion and signing at Books, Inc., a San Francisco bookstore in the Castro District. It was one of the largest and proudest LGBT audiences I had seen at a book event for an LGBT author. Though the event was on a chilly November night in San Francisco, LGBT warmth was abundant for Hormel. After the signing, I engaged the former ambassador in a brief conversation about Jesse Helms, who died on July 4, 2008. He regretted the LGBT lives harmed by Helm’s homophobic hate speech.
In 2013, after Rep. Barney Frank left Congress, he gave a well-attended speech for members of the Commonwealth Club of California at the Fairmont Hotel. I covered the event for BAR. Ambassador Hormel and his husband Michael provided quotes for my news story. Hormel agreed with Frank that gays should come out, because people needed “to recognize the presence of gays in our society.”
The last time I spoke with Ambassador Hormel was at a 2014 reception at San Francisco City Hall after the unveiling of the Harvey Milk Forever Stamp. He recalled Milk’s political leadership and public service. He said Congress needed to seriously address gun violence. For me, this event was a rare opportunity to see one gay man of courage, Harvey Milk, honored by another courageous gay man, Ambassador Hormel.
Throughout his life, Hormel enjoyed success. He represented a needed change in our society and U.S. and global diplomacy. His life experience offers lessons in self-acceptance, understanding, and discipline.
In a 2013 story in the San Francisco Chronicle about homophobia, Hormel said: “I was in my 30s when I finally was willing to come out. I had been married [to a woman] for 10 years. I had children. I was hiding. I was pretending. If I [had] led my life like that, how can I expect other people to suddenly just come around.” This was, no doubt, a painful thing for Hormel to say. It may have also been therapeutic for Hormel to share with others.
Hormel’s life experience was personal growth, achievement, and happiness despite the painful memories. He successfully worked through the mental stress that many LGBT people experience. If young LGBT professionals are looking for an LGBT role model, they might consider Hormel.
It is important to keep Hormel’s memory alive so others can learn from his success. I recently wrote the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) to request a Forever stamp honoring Ambassador James Hormel.
In a letter of Feb. 16, Shawn Quinn, the USPS manager of Stamp Development, wrote: “I am pleased to inform you that this proposal will be submitted for review and consideration before the Citizens’ Stamp Advisory Committee at their next meeting.” Mr. Hormel is worthy of remembrance in this way. He was an honorable man.
A Forever Pride Stamp for Ambassador James Hormel in 2025? If you agree, please let Shawn Quinn and your members of Congress hear from you. Happy Pride 2024!
James Patterson, a life member of the American Foreign Service Association, is a writer and communications consultant in the D.C. area.
"congratulations" - Google News
April 04, 2024 at 03:18AM
https://ift.tt/JULlfe2
Congratulations to D.C.'s amazing Mayor Bowser - Washington Blade
"congratulations" - Google News
https://ift.tt/bM9OhtZ
Shoes Man Tutorial
Pos News Update
Meme Update
Korean Entertainment News
Japan News Update
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Congratulations to D.C.'s amazing Mayor Bowser - Washington Blade"
Posting Komentar