President Trump hasn't declared June as Pride Month — at least, not yet

Jessica Estepa | USA TODAY

President Trump has yet to declare June as LGBT Pride Month.

No Republican president has ever recognized June as pride month. The White House did not immediately return a request for comment on whether the president would follow in the footsteps of former presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama.

The first president to issue a presidential proclamation about pride month was Clinton, back in 1999.

In his first proclamation, Clinton said, "I am proud of the measures my administration has taken to end discrimination against gays and lesbians and ensure that they have the same rights guaranteed to their fellow Americans... America's diversity is our greatest strength. But, while we have come a long way on our journey toward tolerance, understanding, and mutual respect, we still have a long way to go in our efforts to end discrimination."

Clinton issued a second proclamation in 2000, his final year in office.



The practice didn't carry over to the George W. Bush years. During his administration, Bush supported a constitutional amendment that would ban same-sex marriage, but he backed civil unions.

For every year of his presidency, Obama issued a pride month proclamation and hosted annual LGBT pride receptions.



"There remains much work to do to extend the promise of our country to every American, but because of the acts of courage of the millions who came out and spoke out to demand justice and of those who quietly toiled and pushed for progress, our Nation has made great strides in recognizing what these brave individuals long knew to be true in their hearts — that love is love and that no person should be judged by anything but the content of their character," Obama said in his final proclamation last year.

"During Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month, as Americans wave their flags of pride high and march boldly forward in parades and demonstrations, let us celebrate how far we have come and reaffirm our steadfast belief in the equal dignity of all Americans."

Shin Inouye, who served in the Obama administration as the LGBT communications liaison, noted that a pride month proclamation was missing among the Trump administration's proclamations made for June.