Openly gay Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar told an audience at the South By Southwest (SXSW) festival this past weekend that he plans to raise the issue of LGBT rights when he meets with Vice President Mike Pence later this week.
“We’ve always seen America as a beacon of freedom. This is the land of the free, the home of the brave, this is where the gay rights movement began,” Varadkar said at the popular SXSW festival and conference this past weekend. “It’s really tough to see a country built on freedom, build on individual freedom, not being a world leader in that space anymore. I think the majority of American people would agree with what I have to say, even if the administration doesn’t.”
Varadkar is Ireland’s first openly gay head of state. He also plans to visit New York City’s Stonewall Inn, now a U.S. National Monument.
For more details on Varadkar’s visit to the U.S., check out the Irish Times HERE.
