Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign released a new video featuring the politician talking about LGBTQ issues, but the ad’s visuals doesn’t match the inclusion touted by the candidate.
Snippets of Clinton’s speeches on LGBT issues play above video of same-sex couples kissing and watching the candidate speak… but people of color and transgender individuals are noticeably missing from the picture.
Ten same-sex couples are shown kissing in the spot and Slate’s Mark Joseph Stern gives the campaign kudos for standing out in a crowded field of candidates vying for the attention of the LGBTQ voting block. While many political ads have featured LGBTQ couples, kissing couples is not the norm.
“Given the distressingly puritanical rules that govern gay PDAs, it’s both impressive and heartening that Clinton includes gay kisses in her official campaign spots,” he writes. “The ad forces viewers to confront images that might make them feel slightly uneasy, then encourages them to view such affection as a normal, healthy manifestation of adult intimacy.”
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But “uneasy” could also be the feeling left with transgender folks and people of color. Trans rights are specifically mentioned in a clip from one of Clinton’s previous speeches, but the visuals mostly focus on same-sex couples.
Also missing are people of color; the spot shows only three African-Americans and a couple of other people who could possibly be Latino. The ad also overwhelmingly features men.
Snippets from Clinton’s speech to the Human Rights Campaign are also highlighted, but, again, white men dominate the audience shown listening to the candidate. HRC has often been criticized for being too white male-centric to the detriment of transgender people and people of color. As the camera pans the audience, only one person of color can be seen in the room.
“Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Americans deserve to live their lives free from discrimination,” the videos description reads. “Hillary knows the fight for LGBTQ equality will not be finished until every American can not only marry, but also live, work, pray, learn, and raise a family free from discrimination.”
Watch the video below:
