Marco Rubio’s long history of anti-LGBTQ activism

As Floridians and Americans continue to become more tolerant and supportive of equality, Senator Marco Rubio (R-Florida) continues to double down on his record of opposing LGBTQ Floridians’ basic rights and freedoms.

Just last month, he publicly attacked the right to same sex-marriage in a speech to a group known for pushing extreme anti-LGBTQ legislation. Rubio’s anti-LGBTQ activism goes back to his days as a leader in the State House and has continued as he’s assumed leadership within the national GOP.

But even for a GOPer, his views are extreme when compared to that of other GOP elected leaders nationally. It puts him to the right of Donald Trump, who while not particularly tolerant, tended to avoid the sort of buzz words Rubio uses or tried to parse his words to look more moderate. But when it comes to this basic civil rights issue, Rubio has no filter. He’s an extremist.

Rubio has a long record of supporting attacks on LGBTQ Floridians’ rights:

He has long opposed gay marriage and even said he wants to overturn the Supreme Court ruling that legalized it.

Rubio defended and supported Florida’s discriminatory “Don’t Say Gay” law which was championed by Governor Ron DeSantis. The law effectively bans discussions of LGBTQ people in schools, legislation that many worry will make Florida schools less safe.

Just two months after the tragic shooting at Pulse Nightclub, Rubio traveled to Orlando to give a speech reaffirming his opposition to same-sex marriage at an anti-LGBTQ rally. This was during an election year where Donald Trump’s, his party’s nominee for President positioned himself as a moderate on this issue.

Rubio supported Florida’s ban on allowing same-sex couples to adopt, calling gay adoption “a social experiment.” At the time Florida was one of only two states that did not permit LGBTQ couples to adopt children.