News
2006-08-17
Cincinnati group
abandons fight to repeal pro-gay law
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Cincinnati group has given up its efforts to have
voters decide whether gay people should be protected
un
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Cincinnati group has given up its efforts to have
voters decide whether gay people should be protected
under the city's antidiscrimination ordinance. The
group Equal Rights Not Special Rights withdrew its
petitions for the November ballot on Tuesday because many of
the signatures collected were obvious forgeries, chairman
Phil Burress said.
Some of the signatures opponents planned to
challenge included those of Cuban president Fidel
Castro and Cincinnati Reds owner Bob Castellini. The
withdrawal may mark the end of a 14-year battle in the city
over whether gay people should be protected from discrimination.
"This shows how much the city has changed," said
Gary Wright, cochairman of Citizens to Restore
Fairness, a group that supports gay rights.
The Cincinnati city council decided in March to
add protections for gay and transgender
people to its human rights ordinance, which
also protects people from discrimination based on race,
gender, age, color, religion, disability status, marital
status, and ethnic, national, or Appalachian regional
origin. The amended law didn't take effect while Equal
Rights Not Special Rights tried to place the measure
before voters.
The original ordinance that passed in 1992
included protections for gays. Soon after that,
residents voted for an amendment that no longer
had gays as a protected class. Voters changed their
minds in a 2004 election, however, which led to the
city council's vote. (AP)
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