Pocatello rallies for Non-Discrimination Ordinance

April 9, 2013 by Leave a comment

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Photo courtesy of Josh Rahl

The passage of an anti-discrimination ordinance in Pocatello maybe still to close to call, but  that doesn’t mean its supporters are just  sitting around waiting for a final vote.

City council members heard from dozens of supporters of the ordinance last week during a public testimony meeting.  According to the Chair of the Human Relations Advisory Committee for the city of Pocatello and a key supporting figure of the law, Susie Matsuura, approximately 200 residents turned out last Thursday to hear testimony and speak in favor of the ordinance that would ban discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity in housing, employment and public accommodations.

“Just the numbers of people who turned out last night took my breath away, and their impassioned testimony – oh my. I can’t think of the words to praise them for their bravery and passion in coming forward to share a very personal part of their lives,” said Matsuura in a press release.

Matsuura said she “urges all to thank the Pocatello City Council and Mayor for the opportunity to speak out on this important issue. The city leaders took the time to really hear the voices and see the “beating hearts” of some of their most vulnerable constituents.”

During the meeting State Senator Roy Lacey, D-District 29, spoke in favor of the ordinance, telling the council members he believed the measure would benefit the community as a whole.

Former city council woman and state representative, Donna Boe, also spoke. She said she empathized with the council as they deliberate their decision, but she encouraged them to view the measure favorably.

The meeting was filled with several emotional moments. Despite the fact that  they could lose their jobs and their housing,  four residents “came out” publicly for the first time to support the measure, including Gloria Mayer, a 63-year old grandma.  Mayer noted, “I am gay. That is the first time I have said that publicly. It is not that I’m embarrassed to be gay. But I have always felt that who I love is nobody’s business. ‘Sometimes you have to stand up for what you believe in,’ so here I am.”

Following the meeting, supporters were encouraged to send notes of thanks to the city council members.  A Facebook group set up to keep citizens informed about the ordinance is also encouraging folks to show their support by taking the following steps:

1. Plan to come to the next city council meeting on April 18, city hall, 6 p.m., earlier if you want to get a seat — they need to see our beating hearts and see our faces — AGAIN. We are real people with lives.

2. Write letters and emails, even very short ones that just say, “pass the ordinance” to the city council and if you want, the mayor.

3. Make one-on-one appointments with Councilmen Jim Johnston and Steve Brown. Let them hear from you, your personal story.

You can learn more about the ordinance and the group HERE.

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Moscow Advances Anti-Discrimination Ordinance

March 26, 2013 by Leave a comment

Moscow, Idaho

The city of Moscow, Idaho may soon become the fourth city in Idaho to ban discrimination based on a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity. During a meeting Monday night the Moscow City Council Administrative Committee voted 3-0 to send the ordinance onto the full city council with a “do pass” recommendation.

That’s the same committee that sent the ordinance back last month for what Moscow City Councilman Tom Lamar described as “review and input.” According to Jim Huggins, head of GetEQUAL Idaho, the council is expected to take the ordinance up during its meeting on April 1st.

The ordinance, which would prohibit discrimination in areas of housing and employment based on an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity, is a collaboration between the Human Rights Commission and the Fair and Affordable Housing Commission.

Huggins says he expects the Moscow measure will pass the council. If passed, Moscow would join Sandpoint, Boise, and Ketchum in banning LGBT discrimination within city limits. There is speculation that Idaho Falls and Pocatello may be the next cities to take up the matter. Leaders in both towns have previously expressed interest in the idea. Even so, that still leaves about one-sixth of the state’s population unprotected by any sort of sexual orientation or gender identity anti-discrimination ordinance or law. For the seventh year in a row, the Idaho Legislature declined to consider a  similar statewide measure.

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Moscow’s Anti-discrimination Ordinance sent back for Revisions

February 26, 2013 by 6 Comments

Moscow, Idaho

The Moscow Administrative Council voted Monday night to send a proposed ordinance prohibiting LGBT discrimination back to the two committees responsible for crafting it.

The ordinance, which would prohibit discrimination in areas of housing and employment based on an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity, is a collaboration between the Human Rights Commission and the Fair and Affordable Housing Commission.

City Attorney Randy Fife drafted the ordinance and presented it to the City of Moscow Administrative Committee on Monday night.

Jim Huggins, head of GetEQUAL Idaho, attended the meeting. He reports Fair and Affordable Housing Commission’s Ken Nagy told the committee that in some cases discrimination in housing is necessary, based on past rental history etc. but that it’s wrong to discriminate, “just because of a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity”. According to Huggins, Nagy’s was the only testimony taken during the meeting.

According to Moscow City Councilman Tom Lamar,”The City administrative committee action of sending it forward to the two citizen commissions was not so much for edits, but rather asking for review and input. There were no edits or modification requested by the Council Committee.”

The draft will be presented for a public hearing sometime in March or April. Following the hearing, it will return to the Administrative Committee, who will then decide whether or not to pass it on to the full city council. Huggins speculates that if all goes well, the ordinance should be in front of the city council sometime in May.

If passed, Moscow would join Sandpoint, Boise, and Ketchum in banning LGBT discrimination within city limits. There is speculation that Idaho Falls and Pocatello may be the next cities to take up the matter. Leaders in both towns have previously expressed interest in the idea.

For the seventh time in as many years, Idaho lawmakers will once again be asked to amend the state’s Human Rights Act to include the words “sexual orientation and gender identity” on a state-wide level.

Sen. Cherie Buckner-Webb, (D) Boise, says that she’s prepared to sponsor the measure this session. The language of the bill would be similar to last year’s proposed amendment, with a few minor changes.

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Unanimous: Ketchum City Council passes city-wide Non-Discrimination Ordinance

January 23, 2013 by 4 Comments

ketchum

Lesbian, gay. bisexual and transgender folks who live, work and play in the south-central Idaho town of Ketchum will soon be included in a citywide non-discrimination policy.

The Ketchum city council passed the ordinance, which prohibits discrimination based on a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity in cases of housing, employment and public accommodation, unanimously, after a third reading of the measure on Tuesday night.

Mayor Randy Hall told the Idaho Mountain Express in December that for him the issue was “simple”

“The city has zero tolerance when it comes to discrimination based on somebody’s sexual orientation,” he said. “We wanted to make sure we lead by example and make sure everybody understands that there will be no discrimination in Ketchum..”

The next step will be to create a “Human Relations Review Board” which “would be formed to investigate complaints of violations of the ordinance. The emphasis of the ordinance will be on “mediation and education.” However, violators could be charged by the Blaine County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office with a misdemeanor,” the newspaper reports.

Ketchum is the third city in Idaho to enact such an ordinance. Sandpoint passed its anti-discrimination ordinance in 2011 and Boise passed a similar measure in December. Leaders in Pocatello, and Moscow are also considering adding their own anti-discrimination bans.  Driggs considered its own proposal in November but council members voted not to move the measure forward.

According to reports, Idaho Falls was scheduled to have the first reading of its anti-discrimination ordinance tomorrow night.  However, the City Clerk’s office says it isn’t on the council’s agenda. There are also reports that the measure maybe changed to a simple resolution, which, while still encouraging, wouldn’t carry as much weight as a full ordinance.

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Ketchum’s Anti-Discrimination Ordinance heads for Final Approval

January 8, 2013 by 1 Comment

ketchum

A proposed ordinance that would make it illegal to discriminate against a person because of his or her gender identity or sexual orientation was approved for a third and final reading by the Ketchum City Council on Tuesday night.

This week’s meeting marks the second time the council has unanimously voted to advance the measure.

Though council members could have voted to suspend a third reading of the proposal, city officials say they want to make sure it receives a fair political process.

Lisa Horowitz, director of community and economic development, told The Idaho Mountain Express in December that “there’s no absolute urgency,” to pass the measure. “This ordinance is a new topic for the city and the council wants to give the public opportunity to comment before adopting the ordinance,” she said.

If given final approval, during next week’s council meeting, on January 22nd, “a proposed Human Relations Review Board would be formed to investigate complaints of violations of the ordinance. The emphasis of the ordinance will be on “mediation and education.” However, violators could be charged by the Blaine County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office with a misdemeanor,” the newspaper reports.

If passed, Ketchum would become the third city in Idaho to enact such an ordinance. Sandpoint passed its anti-discrimination ordinance in 2011 and Boise passed a similar measure in December. Leaders in Pocatello, Idaho Falls and Moscow are also considering adding their own anti-discrimination bans.  Driggs considered its own proposal in November but council members voted not to move the measure forward.

Boise’s ordinance went into affect on January 1st.  There will be a meeting tomorrow night, Wednesday, January 8th from 6:30-8:00 pm, at the Community Center in Garden City to answer any questions members of the LGBT community might have regarding the new law. Click HERE to learn more.

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