A GOP lawmaker who's advocated for gay and transgender issues in Congress is now bringing the effort to a public service announcement aimed aimed at the Latino community,
The New York Times reports.
Florida Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen – a vocal advocate after her child, Rodrigo Heng-Lehtinen, revealed his new gender identity — will appear in the PSA Monday with her husband Dexter Lehtinen and son.
In the video, the Times reports the Lehtinen family hope to convey to the Latino community Heng-Lehtinen's comfort and happiness with his decision — and his family's acceptance of that.
"Every transgender person is a part of someone’s family and should be treated with compassion and protected from discrimination," the congresswoman says in the video for
SAVE, a south Florida gay rights organization, the Times reports.
In an interview with the Times, Ros-Lehtinen explains she was "worried about his safety and about his well-being," after her now-30-year-old son announced his new gender identity when he was 21.
"I didn’t want him to be depressed," she said. "You think of all the parade of horribles that could happen."
Now, unlike her opposition with President Barack Obama on an array of issues, she stands by the president on his controversial directive to schools to let students use the school facilities that match the sex they identify with.
"Allowing students to use the bathroom of their authentic selves is a step forward in stopping the stigma around transgender individuals," she tells the Times. "Unnecessary laws only make transgender youth feel unaccepted, and can lead to depression or even worse, suicide."
"The Republican Party’s stance on the issue is lagging behind," she adds. "But folks are figuring out that there is no political harm in embracing these issues and, in fact, they see a lot of good can come out of it."
The PSA comes as the
president's new directive is roiling tensions between Republican-led statehouses and the federal government over divisive social issues.