--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Obama has presided over sweeping cultural…" description: "\"Obama has presided over sweeping cultural advances, particularly in the rights of gay and lesbian Americans.\" — Joy Reid" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ae2/joy-reid-6005_cultural_obama-has-presided-over-sweeping-cultura_1264200.jpg" --- # Obama has presided over sweeping cultural advances… ![“Obama has presided over sweeping cultural advances, particularly in the rights of gay and lesbian Americans.” quote by Joy Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ae2/joy-reid-6005_cultural_obama-has-presided-over-sweeping-cultura_1264200.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ae2/joy-reid-6005_cultural_obama-has-presided-over-sweeping-cultura_1264200.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ae2/joy-reid-6005_cultural_obama-has-presided-over-sweeping-cultura_1264200.jpg) > “Obama has presided over sweeping cultural advances, particularly in the rights of gay and lesbian Americans.” [Joy Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-reid/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Obama's tenure saw major progress for LGBTQ+ rights, reflecting societal shifts toward equality. **In simple terms:** Obama advanced gay and lesbian rights. Key Takeaway Support inclusive policies. Themes equality rights politics Mood hopeful inspirational Type political historical When to use this quote - policy making - activism - community organizing Key Concepts civil rights social change Questions to Reflect On - How can leaders sustain momentum for equality? - What obstacles remain for LGBTQ+ rights? A Different Perspective Progress can be uneven and face backlash. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cultural](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cultural/) [Cultural Advances](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cultural-advances-4029313/) [Gay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gay/) [Obama Presided](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obama-presided-4029312/) [Over](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/over/) [Particularly Rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/particularly-rights-2716195/) [Rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rights/) [Rights Gay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rights-gay-270494/) [Sweeping](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sweeping/) [Sweeping Cultural](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sweeping-cultural-4029314/) [Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trump/) ## Related quotes > [Ours was not always a nation of homeowners; the New Deal fashioned it so, particularly through the G.I. Bill of Rights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-desmond/ours-was-not-always-a-nation-of-homeowners-the-new-deal-fashioned-it/) [Matthew Desmond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-desmond/) > [For many years now, I have been an outspoken supporter of civil and human rights for gay and lesbian people. Gays and lesbians stood…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coretta-scott-king/for-many-years-now-i-have-been-an-outspoken-supporter-of-civil-and/) [Coretta Scott King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/coretta-scott-king/) > [My own country's record on human rights for gay people is far from perfect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/my-own-country-s-record-on-human-rights-for-gay-people-is-far-from/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [Establishing the rights for gay people to be married would cost the Australian government nothing financially and would gain for you worldwide respect from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mckellen/establishing-the-rights-for-gay-people-to-be-married-would-cost-the/) [Ian Mckellen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mckellen/) > [I have gay friends, I support gay rights, I have nothing against the gay community, but when I see two guys kissing, I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/artie-lange/i-have-gay-friends-i-support-gay-rights-i-have-nothing-against-the/) [Artie Lange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/artie-lange/) > [Fundamentalists tell us to fear the specter of special rights for gay citizens, though of course gay Americans aren't after special rights - merely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-faircloth/fundamentalists-tell-us-to-fear-the-specter-of-special-rights-for-gay/) [Sean Faircloth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-faircloth/) > [If you believe in equal rights, then what do “women’s rights,” “gay rights,” etc., mean? Either they are redundant or they are violations of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/if-you-believe-in-equal-rights-then-what-do-women-s-rights-gay-rights/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [For historic reasons - principally the political Right's opposition to gay rights - most gay spokespeople continue to think that the political Right is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-murray/for-historic-reasons-principally-the-political-right-s-opposition-to/) [Douglas Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-murray/) > [I support ensuring that committed gay couples have the same rights and responsibilities afforded to any married couple in this country. I believe strongly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/i-support-ensuring-that-committed-gay-couples-have-the-same-rights/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Like being a woman, like being a racial religious tribal or ethnic minority, being LGBT does not make you less human. And that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/like-being-a-woman-like-being-a-racial-religious-tribal-or-ethnic/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [“Stay with me...opponents of gay marriage claim that granting equal legal rights to gay couples would degrade the sanctity of a sacred familial institution.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-l-pozner/stay-with-me-opponents-of-gay-marriage-claim-that-granting-equal/) [Jennifer L. Pozner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-l-pozner/) > [It's just in Washington we're talking about equal rights for gay people, civil liberty to smoke marijuana, taking care of the environment, and it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-steves/it-s-just-in-washington-we-re-talking-about-equal-rights-for-gay/) [Rick Steves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-steves/) > [I care about women's rights and reproductive rights and my gay friends being able to keep their marriages official. You don't want your genre…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maren-morris/i-care-about-women-s-rights-and-reproductive-rights-and-my-gay/) [Maren Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maren-morris/) > [I think worldwide, the movement has been towards accepting and respecting the individuality and the rights of gay people, lesbians and transgender people. Here,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kabir-bedi/i-think-worldwide-the-movement-has-been-towards-accepting-and/) [Kabir Bedi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kabir-bedi/) > [If you ask me about my views on the environment, on women's rights, on gay rights, I am liberal. I don't have a problem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/if-you-ask-me-about-my-views-on-the-environment-on-women-s-rights-on/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) ## More by Joy Reid > [Trump is reviled around the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-reid/trump-is-reviled-around-the-world/) [Joy Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-reid/) > [What White America and Black America wanted and expected from Obama were fundamentally different and opposite things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-reid/what-white-america-and-black-america-wanted-and-expected-from-obama/) [Joy Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-reid/) > [If Obama was fundamentally different from prior presidents, Trump seems to violate every tenet of what Americans have long sought as our national image.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-reid/if-obama-was-fundamentally-different-from-prior-presidents-trump/) [Joy Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-reid/) > [In many ways, Trump is both a boon and a bane to Republicans. His insanity and moral decrepitude keep the country focused on things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-reid/in-many-ways-trump-is-both-a-boon-and-a-bane-to-republicans-his/) [Joy Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-reid/) > [To be white in America is to assume, with total self-confidence and little afterthought, the personal ownership of public spaces.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-reid/to-be-white-in-america-is-to-assume-with-total-self-confidence-and/) [Joy Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-reid/) > [Dwight Eisenhower presented a face of America that was heroic and resolute; Ronald Reagan represented a return to confidence and glamour after the weary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-reid/dwight-eisenhower-presented-a-face-of-america-that-was-heroic-and/) [Joy Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-reid/) > [Trump's affinity for Russia dates back at least to the late 1980s, during the time of the Soviet Union, and it intensified after his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-reid/trump-s-affinity-for-russia-dates-back-at-least-to-the-late-1980s/) [Joy Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-reid/) > [Trump's more outre economic ideas, like repealing trade bills and implementing a massive surcharge on imports, would seem like non-starters in a Republican-led House…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-reid/trump-s-more-outre-economic-ideas-like-repealing-trade-bills-and/) [Joy Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-reid/) > [Too great a love for the presidency has caused Democrats to neglect state and local politics and to overly prize compromise and a futile…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-reid/too-great-a-love-for-the-presidency-has-caused-democrats-to-neglect/) [Joy Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-reid/) > [Bill Clinton had a hell of a first 24 months, even though he, like Trump, enjoyed a congressional majority. Scandal after scandal befell the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-reid/bill-clinton-had-a-hell-of-a-first-24-months-even-though-he-like/) [Joy Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-reid/) > [Whether on guns, race, culture or feminism, there really are two Americas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-reid/whether-on-guns-race-culture-or-feminism-there-really-are-two-americas/) [Joy Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-reid/) > [The sharp differences between the way city dwellers and rural, suburban and exurban residents vote, think and live cannot be papered over by federal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-reid/the-sharp-differences-between-the-way-city-dwellers-and-rural/) [Joy Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-reid/) > [Even without the euphoria of 'yes we can,' Hillary Clinton is to white women what Barack Obama was to African-Americans. She represents the opportunity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-reid/even-without-the-euphoria-of-yes-we-can-hillary-clinton-is-to-white/) [Joy Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-reid/) > [If you've never feared the police - if you don't get a dull ache in the pit of your stomach when you see red…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-reid/if-you-ve-never-feared-the-police-if-you-don-t-get-a-dull-ache-in-the/) [Joy Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-reid/) > [Republicans don't vote Republican because of Nancy Pelosi. They vote Republican because they are Republicans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-reid/republicans-don-t-vote-republican-because-of-nancy-pelosi-they-vote/) [Joy Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-reid/) [Explore all 100 Joy Reid quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-reid/) ## More Cultural quotes > [We have never escaped a certain male cultural desire for women's silence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-beard/we-have-never-escaped-a-certain-male-cultural-desire-for-women-s/) [Mary Beard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-beard/) > [The world is getting more connected through technology and travel. Cuisines are evolving. Some people are scared of globalization, but I think people will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mackey/the-world-is-getting-more-connected-through-technology-and-travel/) [John Mackey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mackey/) > [Most of the more celebrated names among African-American authors, poets, and artists are known to the world because of their association with specific cultural…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aberjhani/most-of-the-more-celebrated-names-among-african-american-authors/) [Aberjhani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aberjhani/) > [The most successful cultural diplomacy strategy integrates people-to-people or arts/culture/media-to-people interactions into the basic business of diplomacy. The programs in Afghanistan, Egypt, and Iran…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-p-schneider/the-most-successful-cultural-diplomacy-strategy-integrates-people-to/) [Cynthia P. Schneider](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-p-schneider/) > [“It has become a cultural norm in Jewish families for parents to bring up their children to value wealth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-w-charles/it-has-become-a-cultural-norm-in-jewish-families-for-parents-to-bring/) [H.W. Charles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-w-charles/) > [When the 2008 victory of Barack Obama and the defeat of grumpy old John McCain began looking, um, inevitable, I started fielding inquiries about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-perlstein/when-the-2008-victory-of-barack-obama-and-the-defeat-of-grumpy-old/) [Rick Perlstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perlstein/) > [Affirmative action was designed to recognize the uniquely difficult journey of African-Americans. This policy was justifiable and understandable, even to those who came from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-webb/affirmative-action-was-designed-to-recognize-the-uniquely-difficult/) [Jim Webb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-webb/) > [While we welcome people of all faiths in America we cannot be so naive as to expect all countries to do the same. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-huffington/while-we-welcome-people-of-all-faiths-in-america-we-cannot-be-so/) [Michael Huffington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-huffington/) > [K-pop itself is not just a music genre, but a whole cultural phenomenon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-tae-min/k-pop-itself-is-not-just-a-music-genre-but-a-whole-cultural-phenomenon/) [Lee Tae-min](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-tae-min/) > [I feel that there are a few things in the world without cultural barriers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-chan/i-feel-that-there-are-a-few-things-in-the-world-without-cultural/) [Jackie Chan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-chan/) > [“So, drenched and downing champagne, I danced a rather demented waltz-cum-jig with a young bride I'd never met before in a place I'd never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-irwin/so-drenched-and-downing-champagne-i-danced-a-rather-demented-waltz/) [Colin Irwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-irwin/) > [I make it my business to see or do something cultural in every place I go to. If you don't, you'll get into a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-reynor/i-make-it-my-business-to-see-or-do-something-cultural-in-every-place/) [Jack Reynor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-reynor/) > [There are various kinds of savagery: emotional, spiritual, economic, and cultural savagery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-winslow/there-are-various-kinds-of-savagery-emotional-spiritual-economic-and/) [Don Winslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-winslow/) > [The religious imagery and fairytales that formed our shared cultural references have been replaced by the cult of celebrity. Marilyn is the sex goddess,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-jackson/the-religious-imagery-and-fairytales-that-formed-our-shared-cultural/) [Alison Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-jackson/) > [In the first speech I delivered as health secretary, I made one thing perfectly clear: we need a cultural shift in the NHS: from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lansley/in-the-first-speech-i-delivered-as-health-secretary-i-made-one-thing/) [Andrew Lansley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lansley/) [Browse all 519 Cultural quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cultural/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Obama has presided over sweeping cultural advances, particularly in the rights of gay and lesbian Americans.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Joy Reid" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-reid/obama-has-presided-over-sweeping-cultural-advances-particularly-in/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cultural" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-reid/obama-has-presided-over-sweeping-cultural-advances-particularly-in/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ae2/joy-reid-6005_cultural_obama-has-presided-over-sweeping-cultura_1264200.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ae2/joy-reid-6005_cultural_obama-has-presided-over-sweeping-cultura_1264200.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ae2/joy-reid-6005_cultural_obama-has-presided-over-sweeping-cultura_1264200.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Obama has presided over sweeping cultural advances, particularly in the rights of gay and lesbian Americans.” — Joy Reid", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Joy Reid", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-reid/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Obama has presided over sweeping cultural...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-reid/obama-has-presided-over-sweeping-cultural-advances-particularly-in/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-reid/obama-has-presided-over-sweeping-cultural-advances-particularly-in/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```