California town
reverses ban on pride proclamations

The city council of Los Altos, located south of San Francisco, surprised gay rights supporters Tuesday night by voting to repeal a ban on proclamations relating to sexual orientation. The ban had been in place since February, after the local high school gay-straight alliance asked for a gay pride day proclamation. The San JoseMercury-News reports the ban sent shock waves through the suburban city of 28,000 and drew the attention of the media and the ACLU. The civil liberties group implied it might sue and organized protests, including one that took place Tuesday. At a news conference nearly three dozen local business owners and residents called for the council to lift its self-imposed ban. At the council meeting that followed, council members voted unanimously to comply. Mayor Ron Packard, who voted for the ban in February, said he'd changed his mind in part because of a presentation from the high school GSA on July 11. The council voted to give the mayor power to issue any proclamation he wants without council action. (Sirius OutQ News)