Human Rights Campaign (HRC) | Description & History | Britannica (original) (raw)

Human Rights Campaign (HRC), U.S. political advocacy organization promoting equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual, and queer (LGBTQ) individuals and communities. The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) was founded in 1980 by American gay rights activist Steve Endean as the Human Rights Campaign Fund (HRCF), a political action committee (PAC) that endorsed and funded political candidates sympathetic to ending discrimination against homosexuals in health care and employment. In 1989 the HRCF, while maintaining its PAC, grew into a membership-based organization that lobbied both for ending discrimination in health care and for extending hate crime policies to include protection of LGB individuals. In 1995 the organization officially became the HRC, expanding its functions to include public education on LGBT issues as well as political advocacy and lobbying.

In the 1990s and early 2000s, HRC advocated the legalization of same-sex marriage and civil unions. It also advocated the passage of laws barring discrimination against LGBTQ individuals. In the early 21st century it claimed more than 1.5 million members.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia BritannicaThis article was most recently revised and updated by Kara Rogers.