Bigots Seek to Repeal LGBT Protection Ordinance

As reported earlier on GayAgenda.com, the city of Kalamazoo, Michigan recently took a huge step towards providing equality to LGBT citizens.

The Kalamazoo City Commission voted 7-0 to adopt an expanded anti-discrimination ordinance that makes it a municipal civil infraction to discriminate against gays, lesbians and transgender citizens. The ordinance makes it illegal to use sexual orientation to discriminate in housing, public accommodations and employment.

However, now a group of bigots have been busy circulating petitions which seek the repeal of the ordinance.

City Clerk, Scott Borling said former city commissioner and current Kalamazoo County Treasurer Mary Balkema officially turned over 189 pages of petitions that contain about 1,600 signatures.

Borling expects the process of verifying the signatures will extend into next week before it is officially determined that the petitions contain at least 1,273 signatures, the minimum Borling said are necessary to trigger reconsideration of the anti-discrimination ordinance.

Kalamazoo Steps Up to the GLBT Plate

The city of Kalamazoo, Michigan has gone above and beyond existing state and federal laws in efforts to provide equality.

The Kalamazoo City Commission voted 7-0 Monday night to adopt an expanded anti-discrimination ordinance that makes it a municipal civil infraction to discriminate against gays, lesbians and transgender citizens. It is now illegal to use sexual orientation to discriminate in housing, public accommodations and employment.

The idea was originated by the Kalamazoo Alliance for Equality and was modified by City Attorney Clyde Robinson to pattern similar language adopted by Ann Arbor and 15 other Michigan cities, prior to being presented to the city for approval.

Terry Kuseske, chairman of the Kalamazoo Planning Commission, called the action “a bold move whose time has come.”

Under terms of the 10-page city ordinance, sexual orientation is added to a list that includes race, religion, ethnic background, gender, marital status and physical characteristics which may not be used to disqualify people from housing, public accommodations or employment.

In addition, contractors seeking to do business with the city must now show proof they have a policy prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

Hats off to Kalamazoo!

Michigan Group Tackles GLBT Youth Suicide

Statitics show that one in every three GLBT youth will either attempt or commit suicide.  A Kalamazoo, Michigan based nonprofit organization named Project Light is stepping up efforts to do something about it.

A little over a year ago, Adam Taylor, the Director of the program made the decision to start a forum with the goal of getting people involved and helping depressed GLBT teens. Taylor has given over 1,000 hours of his time in the past year to build the organization, by raising funds and recruiting volunteers.

Today, September 13, Project Light will participate in the Out of the Darkness walk at Prarie View Park in Kalamazoo, Michigan. The goal of this event is to raise to $30,000, in conjuction with other groups which will be donated to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

And one of the key groups affected - gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people - will benefit, said Taylor. He should know: Taylor used to be a depressed youth.

Now a college student at Western Michigan University, Taylor, like many gay youth, had a difficult time coming out during high school. “Personally, for me, when I was coming out I had a huge amount of depression for about two years.,” he recalled. “I call it the balloon syndrome. You keep pumping and pumping air into a balloon and eventually it’s going to go flying off and make that cool sound and everything’s OK and happy or, it pops.”