Barney Frank, who represented Massachusetts's 4th district in the House of Representatives from 1981 to 2013, discusses his career in politics, with particular focus on his efforts in support of LGBT rights and contributions to financial regulation in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis. Frank describes his life as a gay representative in Massachusetts and in Washington during the period of his service, and recounts significant events and initiatives with which he was involved in pursuit of LGBT rights, including his work with Steve Endean and the Human Rights Campaign, the HIV/AIDS crisis, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), the issuance and repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell, and the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009. Frank provides insights to the strategic and political concerns of the Obama White House and of leading figures in the 111th Congress in their approach to LGBT civil rights policy, outlining the delicate balance between the pursuit of marriage equality, equality in the military, and employment non-discrimination. Frank also describes his work on financial regulation, focusing on the challenge of keeping regulatory agencies abreast of financial innovation in the private sector, and on the need for regulation of financial activities, in addition to, or instead of, financial institutions. Frank provides details about the development and implementation of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, including comment on the inclusion of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in the bill. He also talks about the changing character of Republican opposition during the period of the Obama presidency, and the wisdom of pursuing bipartisan legislation amid this political context
Presidents--United States; Hate crimes--Law and legislation--United States; Same-sex marriage--Law and legislation--United States; Discrimination in employment--Law and legislation--United States; AIDS (Disease)--Government policy--United States; Gay military personnel--Government policy--United States; Legislators--United States; Global Financial Crisis,--United States; Gay rights--United States; Massachusetts Politics and government; Frank, Barney, 1940-; Obama, Barack; Endean, Steve; Human Rights Campaign Foundation; United States. Congress; United States. Congress (111th : 2009-2010); United States. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau; United States; Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act; Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010
Format
oral histories
Genre
Interviews
Date
2020
Physical Description
60 pages
Note (Biographical)
Barney Frank served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts from 1981 to 2013. He served as chairman of the House Financial Services Committee from 2007 to 2011, and ranking member of the House Financial Services Committee from 2011 to 2013. He co-authored the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. Before serving in the U.S. House of Representatives, Frank served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1973 to 1981. In 1987, he publicly came out as gay, becoming the first member of Congress to do so voluntarily
Note
Interviewed by Michael Falco on October 6, 2020. This interview is part of the Columbia University: Obama Presidency Oral History
Note (Provenance)
Barney Frank, Gift, transferred from Columbia Center for Oral History Research 2022