Gay Rights Advancing in the Heartland

by Michael A. Jones

Published November 23, 2008 @ 01:12PM PT

Heartland, Rust Belt, Midwest - no matter what you call it, gay rights initiatives are making inroads beyond the coastal states.  Case in point, the cities of Kalamazoo, Michigan and Cleveland, Ohio are expected to pass gay rights ordinances addressing discrimination and domestic partner benefits.

Tomorrow evening, a proposed ordinance is scheduled to be put before the Kalamazoo City Commission that would protect LGBT persons from discrimination in housing, employment and public accommodations.  Since there is no federal or statewide non-discrimination act addressing the issue, activists have stepped up on the local level to advance gay rights.  If passed, the "Equal Rights Ordinance" of Kalamazoo will apply to public and private sectors, although a few parties (including religious organizations) will be exempt from the ordinance.

"The goal of the ordinance is to create a level playing field," said Terry Kuseske, head of the Kalamazoo Alliance for Equality's political action committee.  City Commissioner David Anderson, who worked closely with Miller and Kuseske to mold the proposal, said the initiative is similar to more than 15 ordinances that have been enacted across the state in cities such as Ann Arbor, Ferndale and Grand Rapids.

Elsewhere, Cleveland's City Council is set to take up a proposal to create a domestic partnership registry in the city.

The registry is non-binding, meaning that absolutely no one is forced to participate in it.  But LGBT rights activists and city councilors hope that the symbolic measure sends a message to Cleveland-based businesses to support domestic partnerships as a means of creating a healthy and equal workplace.  If passed, Cleveland will join more than three dozen other municipalities nationwide with domestic partnership registries.  Sadly, only two other city in Ohio - Cleveland Heights and Toledo - have DP registries.  But organizers are optimistic that Cleveland will become number three, with a supportive City Council and a Mayor who has indicated initial support for the concept.

Before signing off on this post, I want to include the first part of a great article by Connie Schultz (with the Post Chronicle) on Cleveland's efforts.  This excerpt both frustrates me and warms my heart.  It frustrates me because it exposes how under-handed and manipulative certain religious officials (in this case, a Catholic priest) can be when it comes to the issue of LGBT rights.  But it warms my heart to see one of Cleveland's city officials, Joe Cimperman, fight back - and use his faith as justification for supporting same-sex domestic partnerships.  Way to go, Councilman Cimperman.

As soon as the priest heard about proposed plans for a domestic partner registry in Cleveland, he called City Councilman Joe Cimperman.

"You are disloyal to your faith," the priest told Cimperman, who is a lifelong Catholic and chief sponsor of the registry. "This is the wrong thing to do."

My immediate response would have been to ask the priest a few questions:

Does he really think discouraging any version of committed love between two adults should be a priority in these desperate times of lost jobs and foreclosed homes?

Has he noticed that northeastern Ohio is a region in economic crisis?

Wouldn't his time be better spent helping to slow the exodus of yet more members of his depleting flock and stemming the fear of those who remain?

Cimperman's response was more measured. He didn't agree with the priest, and he gently made it clear just why.

"I was raised by a mom who believed that our faith was always more about human rights than religious conscription," Cimperman told him. "So this is completely consistent with my Catholic faith." ...

To read the rest of Schultz's article, go here.