Rufus Gifford, one of the nation’s highest-ranking officials, is certain that he wouldn’t be where he is today if it wasn’t for his sexual orientation.
“I would never have been an ambassador had it not been for the fact that I was gay, because I had to fight for where I was in the world,” the 48-year-old tells The Independent during a video call in late May. “That sort of forced me to get out of my comfort zone and take risks in a way that I may not have done had I not been gay, so it has defined every part of my life.”
