LGBT Discrimination Protections Pass 4-1
Following five months of public debate, the City of Danville approved an LGBT Fairness law June 9th with a 4-1 vote, making the home of Centre College Kentucky's seventh city with discrimination protections in employment, housing, and public accommodations based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Danville joins Covington, Frankfort, Lexington, Louisville, Morehead, and Vicco that have previously approved LGBT Fairness laws in the commonwealth.
Despite angry, vocal opposition from two local churches, threats of a lawsuit from Sunrise Children's Services, and dissent from Mayor Bernie Hunstad, Commissioners James Atkins, Kevin Caudill, and Paul Smiley joined Mayor Pro-Tem Paige Stevens in approving the Danville Fairness ordinance, which was originally proposed in January by local members of the Wilderness Trace Chapter of Kentuckians For The Commonwealth (KFTC).
The latest in a string of local Fairness victories around Kentucky, Danville's law furthers the dialogue surrounding support for a Statewide Fairness Law, which enjoyed unprecedented co-sponsorship in this year's Kentucky General Assembly and a first-ever hearing in the House Judiciary Committee in March. A recent survey shows 83% of Kentuckians support LGBT anti-discrimination protections, and the Fairness Coalition is currently managing grassroots Fairness movements in nearly a dozen cities across the commonwealth. The City of Berea is slated to hold a first reading on their local Fairness ordinance this month.
June 9, 2014 - 8:39pm
