Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) people in the United States may face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBTQ residents, with civil protections widely varying by state. While the rights of lesbian, gay and bisexual people remain among the most advanced in the world, the rights of transgender and intersex people have been significantly eroded since the beginning of the second Trump presidency, with public opinion and jurisprudence changing significantly since the late 1980s.
The White House Council on Women and Girls was an advisory council within the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs of the Executive Office of the President of the United States. It was established by Executive Order 13506 on March 11, 2009, with a broad mandate to advise the president on issues relating to the welfare of women and girls in order to ensure gender equality. It also ensured that other White House agencies acted in a manner to allow all things to be possible for all people. The Council was chaired by Valerie Jarrett and included the heads of every federal agency and major White House office.
The Equality Act was a bill in the United States Congress, that, if passed, would amend the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex, sexual orientation and gender identity in employment, housing, public accommodations, education, federally funded programs, credit, and jury service. The Supreme Court's June 2020 ruling in Bostock v. Clayton County protects gay and transgender people in matters of employment, but not in other respects. The Bostock ruling also covered the Altitude Express and Harris Funeral Homes cases.
Joe Biden's tenure as the 46th president of the United States began with his inauguration on January 20, 2021, and ended on January 20, 2025. Biden, a member of the Democratic Party who previously served as vice president for two terms under President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2017, took office after his victory in the 2020 presidential election over the incumbent president, Donald Trump of the Republican Party. Upon his inauguration, he became the oldest president in American history, breaking the record set by Ronald Reagan. Biden entered office amid the COVID-19 pandemic, an economic crisis, and increased political polarization. He withdrew his bid for a second term in the 2024 presidential election due to low popularity and concerns over his age and health. Trump won the election and succeeded Biden as president, making him the second president to be succeeded in office by his predecessor after Benjamin Harrison.
The presidential transition of Joe Biden began on November 7, 2020, and ended on January 20, 2021. Unlike previous presidential transitions, which normally take place during the roughly 10-week period between the election in the first week of November and the inauguration on January 20, Biden's presidential transition was shortened somewhat because the General Services Administration under the outgoing first Trump administration did not recognize Biden as the "apparent winner" until November 23.
The following is a timeline of the presidency of Joe Biden during the first quarter of 2021, beginning from his inauguration as the 46th president of the United States on January 20, 2021, to March 31, 2021. To navigate between quarters, see timeline of the Joe Biden presidency. For the Q2 timeline see timeline of the Joe Biden presidency.
White House Gender Policy Council was a department within the White House Office for the advancement of gender equity and equality in both domestic and foreign policy development and implementation. It was established upon the inauguration of the Biden administration., and was initially co-chaired by Jennifer Klein and Julissa Reynoso Pantaleón.
The environmental policy of the Joe Biden administration includes a series of laws, regulations, and programs introduced by United States President Joe Biden from 2021 to 2025. Many of the actions taken by the Biden administration reversed or attempted to reverse the first-term policies of his predecessor, Donald Trump.
The immigration policy Joe Biden initially focused on reversing many of the immigration policies of the previous Trump administration, before implementing stricter enforcement mechanisms later in his term.
The U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021 was a legislative bill that was proposed by President Joe Biden on his first day in office. It was formally introduced in the House by Representative Linda Sánchez. It died with the ending of the 117th Congress.
The social policy of the Joe Biden administration is intended to improve racial equity, increase access to safe and legal abortions, tighten restrictions on gun sales, among other aims. A number of policies aim to reverse the former policies of President Donald Trump, including the "Muslim" travel ban and loosened anti-discriminatory policies relating to LGBT people.
Executive Order 13986, officially titled Ensuring a Lawful and Accurate Enumeration and Apportionment Pursuant to the Decennial Census, is the second executive order signed by U.S. President Joe Biden on January 20, 2021. The order reverses Executive Order 13880 and other Trump administration policies that had excluded non-citizens from the census count for the 2020 census. Executive Order 13986 requires non-citizens to be counted in the 2020 census, both for the purposes of enumeration and determining congressional apportionment.
The Joe Biden administration pledged to pass government ethics reform. The Biden administration also pledged to pass legislation and enforce policies to enforce electoral reform, in response to the influence of special interests and gerrymandering in elections.
Executive Order 13988, officially titled Preventing and Combating Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity or Sexual Orientation, was the fourth executive order signed by U.S. President Joe Biden on January 20, 2021. It was rescinded by Donald Trump within hours of his assuming office on January 20, 2025.
Executive Order 13990, officially titled Protecting Public Health and the Environment and Restoring Science to Tackle the Climate Crisis is an executive order signed by President Joe Biden on January 20, 2021, which implements various environmental policies of his administration including revoking the permit for the Keystone XL Pipeline and temporarily prohibiting drilling in the arctic refuge. It was rescinded by Donald Trump within hours of his assuming office on January 20, 2025.
A presidential task force or White House task force is a board of advisors appointed by the president of the United States whose main purpose is to enact policies in relation to responding to either national emergencies, crises, or general policy initiatives. Presidential task force members are part of the Executive Office of the President of the United States who don't require United States Senate confirmation and can be dismissed at the discretion of the president. This is granted by the Constitution of the United States under Article Two, Section Two, Clause One, stating, "require the Opinion, in writing, of the principal Officer in each of the executive Departments, upon any Subject relating to the Duties of their respective Offices."
Executive Order 14036, titled Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy and sometimes referred to as the Executive Order on Competition, is the fifty-first executive order signed by U.S. President Joe Biden. Signed on July 9, 2021, the order serves to establish a "whole-of-government effort to promote competition in the American economy" by encouraging stronger enforcement of antitrust law.
Jennifer Lynn Klein served as Director of the Gender Policy Council and Assistant to the President in the Biden-Harris Administration until 2025. Director Klein was politically appointed to the role on the Gender Policy Council in 2021. President Trump dissolved the council with immediate effect on January 20, 2025. She is well known for her work that has focused on protecting women's rights and advancing gender equality in the United States and around the world. Prior to her role in the Biden-Harris Administration, Klein served in the Clinton and Obama Administrations, taught courses on gender policy issues at Georgetown University and Brown University, and served as Chief Strategy and Policy Officer at TIME'S UP.
Executive Order 14148, entitled "Initial Rescissions of Harmful Executive Orders and Actions" is an executive order signed by United States president Donald Trump on January 20, 2025, during the first day of his second presidential term. The order directed the rescindment of several executive orders enacted during the Biden administration.
