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Fla. county adds sexual orientation, gender identity to human rights ordinance
TAMPA, Fla. — Hillsborough County commissioners on Wednesday voted unanimously in favor of expanding the county’s human rights ordinance to cover sexual orientation and gender identity. The 7-0 vote reversed a former board’s action in 1995 to strip gays and lesbians from the groups protected under the ordinance…
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Hundreds rally in Philadelphia to call for LGBT hate crimes protections
PHILADELPHIA — More than 200 people advocated for changes to the state’s hate-crimes law in the wake of the beating of a gay couple in downtown Philadelphia. The Philadelphia Inquirer reported Thursday that the crowd pushed for Pennsylvania’s anti-hate-crime law to include crimes motivated by sexual orientation. The rally was held in Philadelphia’s…
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The top five myths about LGBT non-discrimination laws debunked
Conservatives routinely attack LGBT non-discrimination laws as unnecessary, burdensome and threatening to religious liberty. But in state after state and city after city, their horror stories haven’t come true. Federal law still doesn’t prohibit discrimination against LGBT people in private employment, housing, or public accommodations, despite widespread …
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Berea, Ky., city council discusses LGBT rights ordinance
BEREA, Ky. — City leaders in Berea, Ky., are considering how to implement a proposed LGBT-inclusive anti-discrimination ordinance that had its first reading this week. The ordinance is modeled after others that include protections for gays and have passed in a handful of Kentucky cities. It is designed to prohibit discrimination based on race, color, religion, sexual orientation…
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Berea, Ky., to hold public meeting on LGBT rights ordinance
BEREA, Ky. — The city of Berea, Ky., has scheduled two meetings in September to discuss a proposed city law that bans discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. The proposal, modeled after several other so-called fairness ordinances that have passed around the state, would outlaw discrimination in employment, housing and public accommodations.
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Bozeman, Mont., residents sue over LGBT non-discrimination ordinance
BOZEMAN, Mont. — Five Bozeman residents are suing the city, the mayor and city commissioners arguing the city did not have the legal authority to enact an ordinance that prohibits discrimination based on a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity. The complaint, filed in District Court, asks the court to declare the non-discrimination ordinance invalid.
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Tempe voters approve protections for LGBT workers in city charter
TEMPE, Ariz. — Voters in Tempe, Ariz., on Tuesday approved a proposition to change the city charter to ban discrimination against LGBT city workers. The vote follows a move by the city council last February approving a citywide ordinance banning discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in areas of housing, employment and public accommodations…
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Owensboro, Ky., delays considering LGBT ordinance until things ‘cool down’
OWENSBORO, Ky. — Officials in Owensboro, Ky., have decided to put off considering a LGBT rights ordinance for at least a year. Mayor Ron Payne told the Messenger-Inquirer that things need to “cool down” before the City Commission discusses the issue. The so-called fairness ordinance would prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
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Fayetteville becomes first Ark. city to pass LGBT non-discrimination law
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The city council in Fayetteville, Ark., early Wednesday approved a controversial LGBT-inclusive non-discrimination ordinance, becoming the first city in Arkansas to enact a law prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. By a 6-2 vote, the council approved the measure following nearly 10 hours of public…
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Mariela Castro breaks tradition in fight for greater LGBT, HIV protections
HAVANA — Yet another revolutionary tradition has been broken in Cuba: A lawmaker voted “no” in parliament. And it wasn’t just any lawmaker. Mariela Castro, the daughter of President Raul Castro and niece of Fidel Castro, gave the thumbs-down to a workers’ rights bill that she felt didn’t go far enough to prevent discrimination against people with HIV or with unconventional gender identities.