Although I do not personally identify with the progressive political movement, I firmly believe in the advancement of LGBT rights in America and around the world. I’ve found common ground with progressives on my belief in equal rights for all people regardless of their sexual orientation. So, you may be wondering, what does this have to do with the Iran deal? The Iran deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), is a nuclear agreement reached by Iran, the United States, the United Kingdom, China, Russia, France, Germany and the European Union. The JCPOA forges a path for Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon. A nuclear-armed Iran would destabilize the Middle East and put America’s closest ally, Israel, at risk. Israel is the only true democracy in the Middle East and the only Middle Eastern country that respects the rights of LGBT people. Israel is a model for moderate Arab countries in the Middle East to grant equality and human rights to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people. The LGBT communities of Egypt, Saudi Arabia and other moderate Arab countries need a strong Israel to give them hope for a more open and inclusive future for the Middle East.

I have been to Israel three times and have seen the country’s liberal democracy that accepts people of all religions, races, ethnicities, nationalities and sexual orientations. Like any other country, Israel still struggles with racism and inequality; but they recognize their social justice issues and continuously work to resolve them. While same-sex marriages are not performed within Israel, the Israeli government has recognized same-sex marriages performed abroad since 2006, making it the only country in Asia to do so. Discrimination based on sexual orientation in Israel has been illegal since 1992: Same-sex couples can adopt together and gays and lesbians have served openly in the Israeli Defense Forces since 1993, 17 years before the United States repealed the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy. The Israeli Knesset (Parliament) is even considering legislation that would make specifying gender on National Identity Cards optional.

If the United States Congress approves the Iran deal, they will grant legitimacy to both the Iranian nuclear program and to the oppressive Iranian government. What message does this send to moderate Iranians who want a free democracy removed from the religious extremism of the Ayatollah (Supreme Leader)? It says that the P5+1, a group of six superpowers that negotiated the deal with Iran, accepts the legitimacy of the dictatorial Iranian regime. The Iranian government spreads its radical ideology across the Arab world through its funding of terrorist proxies like Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, Houthis in Yemen, the Assad regime in Syria and Al-Qaeda across the Middle East and North Africa. In addition to being the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism, Iran is complicit in countless human rights violations. Iran persecutes religious and ethnic minorities, gays, women and political dissidents. Last year, 721 Iranians were executed, mostly by hanging, and at the current pace, Iran will put to death close to 1,000 people this year alone. The Iranian Revolutionary Guard hangs gays by cranes in town squares, splashes acid on women’s faces who they deem immodest and arrests and tortures political dissidents.

Progressives must stand up against the vicious injustices of the regime in Tehran. Americans cannot ignore the Iranian government’s calls of “Death to America” and “Death to Israel.” The Iran deal will immediately free up $150 billion in frozen Iranian assets, which, based on recent history, will likely be used to fund terror. Additionally, the international sanctions put in place over decades in order to influence the Iranian government will be dissolved. Iran will be allowed to inspect its own nuclear sites under an agreement with the U.N.’s International Atomic Energy Agency. The U.N.’s arms embargo and restrictions on ballistic missiles, advanced centrifuges, uranium enrichment, heavy water reactors and plutonium reprocessing will all be lifted within five to 15 years. This deal will start a nuclear arms race in the Middle East, strengthen the control of the Iranian regime and threaten American security and the security of our regional allies. Americans must recognize that a country like Iran that cannot be trusted to protect the rights of its own people cannot be trusted with a nuclear weapon.

You can email your members of Congress by going to bit.ly/OpposeTheDeal.