Biden names new special envoy for LGBTQ+ rights

President Biden announced Friday that he has named Jessica Stern as the special diplomatic envoy at the State Department for LGBTQ rights. 

Her responsibilities will involve ensuring that U.S. diplomacy and foreign assistance promote and protect LGBTQ rights on the global stage. 

Stern will also help put in place a presidential memorandum to advance the rights of LGBTQ people and bring together like-minded governments, nonprofits and corporations to uphold equality and dignity, according to the White House.

Stern is currently the executive director of Outright Action International, which defends human rights internationally and works to prevent abuses of the LGBTQ community. She is also an adjunct professor at Columbia University in New York City.

Later today, Biden is expected to sign into law a measure that makes Pulse Nightclub in Orlando Fla, a national memorial. The nightclub is the location of the deadliest shooting against the LGBTQ+ community in history, when 49 people were shot and killed, and 53 others were injured during the shooting in June 2016.