Toward the end of that stretch, Frank decided to acknowledge publicly that he was gay. I think Barney Frank is going to come out of the room. Back then, almost four decades ago, an openly gay American politician was exotic and audacious, and our leaders were infinitely less fluent in a gay vocabulary. Frank was there for all of it, not just an observer but in many instances a key actor and in all cases someone with a special interest and stake in what was going on. Few politicians have a vantage point and story quite like his. Only the last quality comes through consistently in his autobiography.

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From Barney Frank to Starbucks – gay marriage this week
Barney Frank D-Mass. A handful of groups said last month that they no longer back the Senate-passed version of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act because of its sweeping religious exemption, which would allow religiously affiliated businesses to fire someone for being lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. The provision's language goes far beyond religious exemptions afforded under the Civil Rights Act of , which banned discrimination on the basis of race, gender, religion or national origin.



Barney Frank Blade photo by Michael Key. Retiring Rep. Barney Frank D-Mass.