CINCINNATI (ABP) — Thirteen years after Cincinnati passed the nation's only law banning protection of sexual minorities, its City Council voted overwhelmingly March 15 to reverse the law's effect.
The Cincinnati City Council voted 8-1 March 15 to amend the city's human-rights law to add sexual orientation and gender identity among the classes protected from discrimination in housing and employment. The law already banned discrimination in housing and employment on the basis of gender, faith, ethnicity, color, disability, marital status or place of origin.
In 2004, Cincinnatians repealed Article XII, which had stood since 1993. It was unique nationwide in that it specifically banned gay-rights ordinances.
“It's very important for us to say whoever wants to come to Cincinnati, we'll treat you fairly and justly and welcome your contributions,” said David Crowley, the city council member who was the bill's chief sponsor, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer.
But a leader of the effort to get the 1993 law passed told the newspaper that the council's move was unnecessary. “We have a city that is spinning out of control with crime and other problems, and this council wants to pass laws banning hypothetical situations,” said Phil Burress, who also helped lead a successful 2004 push to ban gay marriage in Ohio. “There are no cases of this type of discrimination, so why pass a law based on sexual orientation?”
With the move, Cincinnati becomes one of 77 municipalities nationwide to ban discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, according to the national gay-rights group Human Rights Campaign. In addition, 17 states and the District of Columbia ban sexual-orientation discrimination, and eight ban discrimination on the basis of gender identity.
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