Bill Clinton, Andy Cohen, Lea DeLaria And More Mourn Edie Windsor's Death

Curtis M. Wong
Updated

Celebrities, politicians and LGBTQ rights advocates alike offered heartfelt words in honor of Edith “Edie” Windsor, who died Tuesday at the age of 88.

Windsor rose to national prominence after she sued the federal government for not recognizing her marriage to her late first wife. Her case, United States v. Windsor, ultimately made it to the Supreme Court in 2013, and preceded the 2015 high court ruling that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide. The Pennsylvania native wed her second wife, Judith Kasen-Windsor, last year.

In a statement to HuffPost, Kasen-Windsor called Windsor “the light of my life.”

“The world lost a tiny but tough as nails fighter for freedom, justice and equality,” she said. “She will always be the light for the LGBTQ community which she loved so much and which loved her right back.”

Echoing those sentiments was attorney Roberta Kaplan, who said representing Windsor in her Supreme Court case “was and will always be the greatest honor of my life.”

“She will go down in the history books as a true American hero. With Edie’s passing,” Kaplan said. “I lost not only a treasured client, but a member of my family.”

Fortunately, Windsor’s legacy as an LGBTQ rights pioneer seems poised to live on for generations. See what Andy Cohen, “Orange is The New Black” star Lea DeLaria, “Ugly Betty” veteran Michael Urie, former President Bill Clinton and other notables had to say about Windsor’s passing.

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