A happy end to a story I wrote about on Saturday. Talking Points Memo is reporting The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission today won the vote for accreditation from the United Nations. This despite several GOP Congressmen’s efforts to undermine a vote:

As we told you last week, Reps. Chris Smith (R-NJ) and Trent Franks (R-AZ) wrote a letter to the other countries who sit on the U.N.’s Economic and Social Council — countries including anti-gay strongholds like Egypt and Saudi Arabia — urging them to vote against the New York-based group’s application.

This is a happy day for our community. As race and religion are increasingly becoming off-limits for tyrants to exploit for power and money, it’s certain LGBTs will increasingly become the focus of scapegoating.

Too, the American Taliban increasingly thwarted in their effort to peddle their homophobic hatred in America, have moved into the export business. This move is exactly the sort of counter-measure that needs to happen. And International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission is exactly the sort of organization that needs more support in the coming years. More from Talking Points Memo:

IGLHRC, which advocates against anti-gay laws and state-sanctioned violence, applied for “consultative status” in 2007, hoping to get access to the U.N. and a more formal voice in the body’s debates. The group’s application languished in the Non-Governmental Organization Committee, which has been notoriously hostile to gay rights groups, for three years.

We can take comfort in the fact this group will have greater resources, access and voice to speak for those victimized internationally by homophobia, in Iraq, Africa, Asia and so many places.

Let us thank our Democratic allies like Senators Gillibrand, Merkley and Wyden who used their bully pulpits to our community’s advantage and helped bring us a win.

The vote reportedly was 23 in favor, 13 against, and 13 abstaining, if anyone’s interested. Associate Press report is here. (more…)