Washington:
US President Barack Obama said on Wednesday that there is a profound recognition in the United States that homosexuals must be treated like every other American.
Yet days after New York state legalised same-sex marriage, the President refused to endorse such unions himself.
At a White House reception for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride Month on Wednesday, Obama praised the New York decision and uttered forceful words in support of gay equality.
However, he did not advance his own position - which he's described as "evolving" - in support of civil unions but not gay marriage.
Obama defended his record on gay rights, pointing to decisions including repealing a ban on gays serving openly in the military and instructing the Justice Department to stop defending in court a law defining marriage as between a man and a woman.
He said he's already done more than the previous 43 presidents combined.
"I've met my commitments to the LGBT community (Lesbian Gay Bisexual & Transgender community). I've delivered on what I promised. Now that doesn't mean our work is done," Obama said.
Obama's views on gay marriage have been in the spotlight in recent days, ever since by coincidence he spoke at a gay-focused fundraiser in New York City last week just as the state's legislature was on the verge of its vote legalising gay marriage.
As he did at the fundraiser in New York, Obama noted his accomplishments for the gay community.
"What gives me hope is the deeper shift that we are seeing, that's a transformation not just in our laws but in the hearts and minds of people. The progress led not by Washington but by ordinary citizens. It's propelled not by politics but by love and friendship and a sense of mutual regard and mutual respect," he said.
Polls show the US public evenly split or narrowly in favour of gay marriage.