Hillary Clinton delivered a stirring eulogy at the funeral of marriage equality hero Edith Windsor — remembering her as a fearless fighter who never wavered in her historic legal crusade.
“That she experienced loss, grief and injustice made her only more generous, more open-hearted and more fearless in her fight,” Clinton said to the hundreds of mourners packed into Temple Emanu-El in Manhattan on Friday.
“She refused to give up on the promise of America. There wasn’t a cynical, defeatist bone in her body.”
Windsor died Tuesday in Manhattan at the age of 88.
A trailblazing IBM systems manager and longtime Greenwich Village resident, Windsor is credited with paving the way for gay marriage.
“She inspired those of us who met her and countless people she never knew,” Clinton said.
“Because of her, people came out, marched in their first pride parade, married the love of their life.
“Thank you, Edie,” she added. “Thank you for being a beacon of hope, for proving that love is more powerful than hate.”
Windsor’s unlikely journey from diminutive computer programmer to towering civil rights pioneer took a pivotal turn in 2009 with the death of her partner of 40 years Thea Spyer.
Windsor inherited Spyer’s estate but was left with a $363,000 tax bill because the federal Defense of Marriage Act barred benefits to gay couples.
Windsor took her legal fight to the Supreme Court — resulting in a victory that toppled DOMA and set the stage for the 2015 ruling that made marriage equality the law of the land.
By the time she got married a second time, to banker Judith Kasen in 2016, Windsor was known as the mother of the marriage equality movement.
“Until the last day, Edie made sure we knew that we were never to forget that until all things are equal for everyone, the battle is not done,” Kasen-Windsor told the mourners.
Windsor’s nephew Lewis Freeman said it never occurred to him during the 1960s and 1970s how unusual it was that his aunt was living with Spyer, another woman.
“They were just the cool cousins who lived on Fifth Avenue in New York City,” Freeman said. “As I grew up, Edie and I became close friends. Later, she became my hero. She still is.”
After the service, which featured a reading of Maya Angelou’s “I Rise” poem, several mourners hugged and sobbed.
“The funeral was very much like Edie,” said Thomas Duane, who was the first openly gay member of the state senate.
“We laughed. We cried. It was magical. “
Former City Council Speaker Christine Quinn called Windsor a “warrior for our community.”
“She was also one of the most lovely, most giving, most generous of soul and heart people I have ever, ever met,” Quinn added.
“She was a hoot. She had fun. That’s what kept her going.”
