Bennet, Smith, Colleagues Honor Pride Month

Jun 29, 2026 | Press Releases

Denver - Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet joined Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) and 44 Senate colleagues in introducing a resolution recognizing June as Pride Month. This resolution highlights the contributions LGBTQ+ individuals have made to American society, notes several major milestones in the fight for equal rights, and reaffirms the Senate's commitment to protecting LGBTQ+ rights and freedoms. This year's resolution comes on the heels of President Trump's year of tumultuous attacks on the rights of LGBTQ+ people, including efforts to ban transgender military service, shutter LGBTQ+ services under the 988 National Suicide Hotline, and remove protections against discrimination for the LGBTQ+ community.

The resolution also recognizes the continued challenges across the United States, including efforts at the state and federal levels to restrict civil rights and liberties, limit access to essential services, and undermine the visibility and recognition of LGBTQ+ people.

"As Colorado celebrates Pride Month, we affirm that no one should be discriminated against for being who they are or for who they love," said Bennet. "From housing to healthcare, we've defended hard-won protections for our LGBTQ+ community against Trump's bigoted attacks. Together, we've fought for equality in Colorado and across the country, expanding representation, pushing back against discrimination at the highest levels, and refusing to abandon the ideals of equality our Constitution demands. This month also serves as a reminder that this fight is not yet over, and we must continue to protect and expand liberties for every American."

"The freedom to live and love openly without fear of retaliation is a fundamental American value," said Smith. "During Pride, it's important that we honor the courage and accomplishments of those who have been on the front lines of this movement. But we also have to recommit ourselves to the fight for justice and equality in the face of ceaseless attacks from hateful politicians."

The first-ever Senate Pride Month Resolution came in June 2017, after then-President Trump broke the eight-year tradition of offering an official presidential proclamation recognizing June as Pride Month.

"In a moment when some lawmakers are working to erase LGBTQ+ people from public life, dozens of Senators just put their names to a simple truth: LGBTQ+ rights are human rights, full stop," said Jennifer Pike Bailey, the Senior Director of Government Affairs at the Human Rights Campaign. "This resolution honors the legacy of Stonewall and the hard-won progress of Obergefell and the Respect for Marriage Act - and it makes clear that the fight for full equality has powerful champions in the United States Senate. We thank Senator Smith for her leadership."

"Pride Month has long been a recognition of the resilience and strength of the LGBTQI+ community," said Mark Bromley, Co-Chair of the Council for Global Equality. "Yet, as we face backsliding on democracy and human rights here in the United States and around the world, we are reminded that progress is never guaranteed. From restrictions on freedom of expression and assembly to laws that criminalize people simply for who they are or whom they love, governments worldwide continue to target LGBTQI+ people to advance their own extreme, political agendas. As these anti-rights movements coordinate across borders, our solidarity must be just as global. This Pride, we are grateful to Senator Smith for her unwavering commitment to LGBTQI+ equality, and we join her in standing with LGBTQI+ people everywhere who are demanding nothing more than the ability to live openly, safely, and with dignity."

Bennet is an ardent supporter of the LGBTQ+ community. In July 2025, Bennet and Senator John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.) joined 43 of their Senate colleagues to reintroduce the bipartisan Refund Equality Act to ensure that married same-sex couples can amend their tax returns back to the date of their marriage. In June 2025, Bennet joined U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) to introduce the No Place for LGBTQ+ Hate Act, which would ensure that President Trump's executive orders targeting LGBTQ+ Americans have no force or effect, and would ensure that no federal funds are used to implement, administer, enforce, or carry out those executive orders. In April 2025, Bennet reintroduced a resolution to designate March 26, 2025 as "Clela Rorex Day" in honor of Clela Rorex, the Boulder County Clerk who issued the first marriage license to a same-sex couple. June 2023, Bennet and 49 of his colleagues reintroduced the Equality Act, which bans discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in housing, education, employment, public accommodations, federal funding, and more. In June 2020, Bennet spoke on the Senate floor to urge his colleagues to support the Respect for Marriage Act to protect marriage equality. In December 2022, Bennet joined then-President Joe Biden at the White House for its signing.

In addition to Bennet and Smith, Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Andy Kim (D-N.J.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), John Fetterman (D-Pa.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), and Angus King (I-Maine) cosponsored this resolution.

The text of the resolution is available HERE.

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