Commentary

Pete Buttigieg officially won Iowa & LGBTQ people are feeling the historic moment

South Bend's Mayor Pete Buttigieg speaks during a rally to announce his 2020 Democratic presidential candidacy in South Bend, Indiana, U.S., April 14, 2019.
South Bend's Mayor Pete Buttigieg speaks during a rally to announce his 2020 Democratic presidential candidacy in South Bend, Indiana, U.S., April 14, 2019. Photo: Shutterstock

Democratic primary candidate Pete Buttigieg made history as the first out gay man and LGBTQ person to win the Iowa caucus. That also makes him the first to get delegates to the national convention, where the official candidate will be chosen.

That moment was felt all over the nation by LGBTQ people who have seen their rights and acceptance grow dramatically over the last couple of decades. It wasn’t until 1987 that homosexuality wasn’t considered a mental illness; now a gay person could potentially be elected president.

Related: Woman who voted for Pete Buttigieg was disgusted to find out he’s gay

Buttigieg’s win, however, was tiny. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) trailed Buttigieg by 0.1%. The total earned Buttigieg two extra delegates than Sanders – 564 to 562.

Sanders ignored the historic moment and declared a “very strong victory” during a speech in New Hampshire. His supporters have become notorious for viciously attacking other candidates and bullying their supporters on social media, a phenomenon Sanders has done little to tamp down or denounce.

And while LGBTQ people were celebrating the weight of the slim victory, several Sanders supporters took the opportunity to downplay the moment, insult Buttigieg, and denigrate people who – despite their choice of candidate – were moved by the experience. Many of the insults were lobbed by straight people.

Here on Facebook where it’s just us friends… can y’all do me a favor real quick?Can we just take a real quick beat…

Posted by Sean Carlson on Thursday, February 6, 2020

Y’all, regardless of how you feel about Mayor Pete as a candidate, you simply must marvel at what he has accomplished by…

Posted by Jerame Davis on Tuesday, February 4, 2020

 

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