One of the things that drew me to Obama was the fact that neither he or his wife are shy about voicing their support for the movement to bring about gay equality and instead have a knack for voicing that opinion where and when it is most effective.  They always take a matter of fact approach and lay out their positions without apology.  And while they certainly have their detractors in the gay community, i.e., those who think he needs to distance himself from (and denounce) anyone who isn't gay inclusive and those who think our dem nominee should throw the election away by supporting federalized marriage equality for gays, my observation has been that most in the real world gay community strongly support his positions and also strongly support the fact that he is clear and open about where he stands.  Michelle Obama's talk yesterday reminded me of this. 

As reported by the AP and the Huffington post:
"Michelle Obama also drew a connection between the struggles for gay rights and civil rights.

'We are all only here because of those who marched and bled and died, from Selma to Stonewall, in the pursuit of a more perfect union,' she said at the event, held days before the anniversary of the 1969 Stonewall riots between gays and New York police, and the city's annual gay pride parade.

...  Touting her husband's record pushing for workplace discrimination legislation as an Illinois state senator and his support of civil unions, Obama noted her husband also had brought a call for equality to conservative groups, telling churchgoers they need to combat homophobia in the black community.

The Illinois senator opposes a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage and says states should make their own decisions on the matter. He has said he's interested in ensuring that same-sex couples in civil unions get federal benefits.'

... McCain supports the military's 'don't ask, don't tel' policy, while Obama has called it 'counterproductive.'"

I'm confident, as a citizen who is gay, that the first term of an Obama presidency will result in enormous strides towards equality for all of our citizens, regardless of sexual orientation.  And hopeful, that during the second term, we will get there.