DNC: Read Sarah McBride's Speech at the Convention

July 28, 2016 5:57 PM EDT

The first openly transgender speaker at a major political party convention lauded the country’s progress on LGBT issues but warned that more needed to be done during brief remarks Thursday night in Philadelphia.

McBride noted that when she first came out as transgender she worried how it would affect her.

“I worried that my dreams and my identity were mutually exclusive,” she said. “Since then, I’ve seen change.”

Since then, McBride has interned at the White House and now works for the Human Rights Campaign.

“Today in America, LGBTQ people are still targeted by hate that lives in both laws and hearts,” she said.

Read her remarks as prepared for delivery:

My name is Sarah McBride, and I am a transgender American. Four years ago, I came out as transgender while serving as student body president in college. At the time, I was scared. I worried that my dreams and my identity were mutually exclusive.

Since then, I have seen that change is possible. I witnessed history while interning in the White House and helping my home state of Delaware pass protections for transgender people. Today, I see this change in the work of the LGBT Caucus and in my own job at the Human Rights Campaign.

But despite our progress, so much work remains. Will we be a nation where there’s only one way to love, one way to look, one way to live? Or, will we be a nation where everyone has the freedom to live openly and equally; a nation that’s Stronger Together? That’s the question in this election.

For me, this struggle for equality became all the more urgent when I learned that my future husband, Andrew, was battling cancer. I met Andy, who was a transgender man, fighting for equality and we fell in love. And even in the face of his terminal illness — this 28 year-old — he never wavered in his commitment to our cause and his belief that this country can change. We married in 2014, and just five days after our wedding, he passed away.

Knowing Andy left me profoundly changed. More than anything, his passing taught me that every day matters when it comes to building a world where every person can live their life to the fullest.

Hillary Clinton understands the urgency of our fight. She will work with us to pass the Equality Act, to combat violence against transgender women of color, and to end the HIV and AIDS epidemic once and for all.

Today in America, LGBTQ people are targeted by hate that lives in both laws and hearts. Many still struggle just to get by. But I believe tomorrow can be different. Tomorrow, we can be respected and protected — especially if Hillary Clinton is our president. And that’s why I’m proud to say that I’m with her.

Read Sarah McBride’s Speech at the Democratic Convention

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