Send prayers and good luck to Scottsdale

[Zerbie]

Scottsdale City Council votes tonight on a city non-discrimination ordinance that includes sexual orientation and gender identity.

I'll let ya'll know how it goes.
:pray:

[antonyh]

Scottsdale City Council votes tonight on a city non-discrimination ordinance that includes sexual orientation and gender identity.

I'll let ya'll know how it goes.
:pray:

Thank you for keeping us updated on this. This is really exciting. I remember all the excitement in Lafayette, IN around a similar bill.

[Zerbie]

It's a miracle!!!!!!
:eek::D:):tup::award::applause::sing::weee::agree: :):pray::love:

[pnggrad79]

What's the miracle? Did the non-discrimination thing pass?

[Zerbie]

What's the miracle? Did the non-discrimination thing pass?

Yep.
:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D

The Scottsdale City Council just voted 4-3 to PASS an ordinance expanding non-discrimination protections for City of Scottsdale employees to add sexual orientation and gender identity as protected classes.

[Vanessa White]

I think that it has to be, at least in part, due to the efforts put forth starting well over a year ago for the statewide initiatives about marriage to not go forth, in large part by our own:




DEAR, SWEET, UNSTOPPABLE ZERBIE GIRL (I MEAN WOMAN LOL!!!!)


Great, uplifting news Zerb- especially since it includes gender identity as well. Progress, slowly but surely, seems to be happening.......:love::love:

[Zerbie]

Btw - one of my names is Zerbgirl, Vanessa, so ya got it just right. :):cool:

I say 'miracle' because Scottsdale City Council has a few members who adamantly maintain that they are all for equality but that gay people do not face discrimination. See their logic in the next paragraph.

One of them kept asking why he has not heard of any Scottsdale employee coming forward with an anti LGBT discrimination complaint. No matter how many times it was explained to him that without protections in place such an individual has no recourse to FILE a complaint, or how many times it was explained that many LGBTs live in closets (far more eloquently and expansively explained by speakers last night,) he kept repeating the questions. Essentially, some city council members believe the fact that there are no protections for gay people means there is no discrimination against them. :rolleyes: He dismissively referred to physical attacks on gay men within Scottsdale as "just a few assaults." Another denied there is any kind of problem whatsoever, saying "WHAT discrimination?. . . WHAT hostile environment," called the ordinance "a solution in search of a problem," then proceeded to say that people calling for equal protections are merely attempting to advance an agenda to give "preferential status to GBLT." One council member said he simply doesn't 'understand why it matters' and that he doesn't know "that we have a problem.'

These comments and questions from council members were interspersed with 2 hours of public comments, meaning that we heard some head-spinning anti-gay hate last night, naturally, 98% of what we heard had NOTHING to do with equal protections in the workplace. There was talk about preferential status and special rights, toilets!, removal of "mom & dad" from school textbooks in CA, comparisons made of gay men to adulterers, scare tactics of all kinds, etc etc etc. Head-spinning, and vicious.

I really thought, given the attitude expressed by some council members, that we had a minority on that council. By the time we were an hour into the comment section, I was fairly certain we were going to lose 4-3. The 4-3 vote to PASS the ordinance was such a relief, I cried.

Two of the members who voted FOR the ordinance said they thought that it was partly a symbolic gesture, but one that was necessary. A third said it was important that GBLT persons have the right to file a complaint, and contrary to the scare tactics advanced by opposition, he saw no possible negative outcome to passing the ordinance. The mayor cast the 4th vote in favor.

So while we heard a lot of yuckiness yesterday, the ending was wonderful.
:)

[Vanessa White]

What a fight for it, right to the end and the vote. I am amazed regularly at the level at which citizens choose to remain ignorant to an accurate portrayal of what some of our experiences are, why we are afraid, concerned, and unprotected to bring our complaints forward. THe changes have to be so sweeping, I think many times people don't seem like they are listening because they want to minimize how large the problem is, from the ground up. So glad that you were there to see change in the making. I hope that it makes a difference for the better for many. Thanks Zerb for all that you do! :love::love:

[tdogg]

Awesome, Zerb, just awesome. Thanks for sharing this. I was wondering what was up with it all. So, just passed but passed nonetheless.

Well done and thanks for all the work you put into activism!! You are one who truly walks the walk. :love:

[antonyh]

I'm happy this passed. Woo hoo!!!

[Sherrie Z]

Yay!!! Hooray! Wheeeeeeeeeeee! : )

Congratulations, Zerbie!!!

[WindHorseKelly]

Thanks for the updateZerb! The more places that have these kind of rights the safer my child,all children, will be in the future! Excellent!

[BruceChris]

First Minneapolis, then Washington, D.C., and then the list gets real long after that. We need your magic, your political organizing skills, your MoJo, or whatever you call it.

P&L, BC