James Hormel, America's First Openly Gay Ambassador, Dies

By The Associated Press

SAN FRANCISCO - James Hormel, the first openly gay American ambassador and noted for his philanthropic work in funding AIDS and human rights organizations, has died at the age of 88.

Hormel died Friday in a San Francisco hospital while listening to his favorite Beethoven concert, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

Her husband, Michael, was by her side.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, a California Democrat, called Hormel a civil rights pioneer and said he lived "an extraordinary life."

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"I will miss his good heart and generous spirit. It is those qualities that made him such an inspiring figure and such a beloved part of our city," she said.

In 1997, then-President Bill Clinton nominated Hormel to become the US ambassador to Luxembourg.

Conservative Senate Republicans blocked the nomination.

But two years later, Clinton used his executive privilege to appoint him ambassador during congressional recess.

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"The process was very long and arduous, hard, insulting, full of misleading statements, full of lies, full of deception, full of antagonism," Hormel said in 2012 during a visit to a West Hollywood, California bookstore to promote his memoirs 'Fit to serve'.

US Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, who is openly gay, has said that as a teenager he was inspired by the fight in Congress during Hormel's confirmation.

"I remember watching the news," he said when Joe Biden nominated him for his current position.

"I learned something about some of the limits that exist in this country when it comes to who is allowed to be included. But what is equally important: I saw how those limits can be challenged."

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Hormel served as ambassador from June 1999 to 2000.

Clinton and his wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, said they were deeply saddened by his death.

"Jim dedicated his life to promoting the rights and dignity of all people, and in his pioneering service in the diplomatic corps, he represented America with honor and brought us closer to living the meaning of a more perfect union," said the Clintons. it's a statement.

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House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who officiated at Hormel's wedding to her husband, said Hormel "made the fight for dignity and equality for all his mission" and highlighted his philanthropic contributions to healthcare organizations. , artistic and educational.

"When the AIDS epidemic fell on San Francisco, it appealed to our conscience and brought the city together to help our neighbors

suffering from the fierce disease," Pelosi said in a statement.

"His work served as a model for national policy to defeat HIV / AIDS and improve the lives of all those affected."

Hormel is the heir to the Hormel Foods corporation fortune.

Born in Austin, Minnesota, he married his college sweetheart, Alice McElroy Parker, and had five children before divorcing in 1965. They moved to San Francisco in 1977.

In addition to her husband, Hormel is survived by five children, 14 grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.