Attorney General Eric Holder on
Saturday called increasing support for gay rights “exhilarating”
and “gratifying.”
Holder put in a surprise appearance at
the Human Rights Campaign's (HRC) 18th annual National
Dinner in Washington, D.C.
Holder told the more than 3,000 people
gathered at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center that this
year's list of achievements were enough “to fill ten annual
dinners.”
“I have seen few things in my
lifetime more exhilarating or more profoundly gratifying than this
nation's resolute turn away from intolerance and toward acceptance,
respect and equality for our lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender
brothers and sisters,” Holder said.
“I will always be proud of the role
the Justice Department has played in securing and implementing the
Supreme Court's landmark ruling in United States v. Windsor,” he
said, a reference to the 2013 case that struck down a critical
provision of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and that has been
repeatedly cited in cases that have overturned state bans on gay
marriage. (The video is embedded on this page. Visit
our video library for more videos.)
Earlier
in the day, Holder announced that the United States is now
recognizing the legal marriages of gay couples in 32 states, plus the
District of Columbia.