Community | August 29, 2010 | 16 comments

Gay anti-discrimination ordinance is withdrawn in Tennessee at request of LGBT rights group

source: http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2010/08/27/gay-discrimination-ordinance-is-withdrawn-in-tennessee-...

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A controversial Employment Non-Discrimination Ordinance (ENDO) created to protect LGBT people from discrimination when applying for jobs with the city council of Memphis, Tennessee, has been withdrawn – at the request of a local gay rights group.

According to eyewitness news, the group, which is called the Tennesse Equality Project (TEP), requested that councilwoman Janis Fullilove withdraw the ordinance when it "became clear" that it would not get a fair hearing when read before city council.

ENDO was set for three readings in Memphis City Council, but Michelle Bliss, vice-chair for the Shelby County TEP said: "It became very apparent that it was being treated differently, and it became very, very apparent we were not going to get a fair hearing from the majority of the council members."

Local religious leaders had already expressed their views against the ordinance. Bishop Edward Stephens from Golden Gate Cathedral said: "It was a subtle move to desensitise what's taking place as a way to ease in a lifestyle and to cause everyone who's against it to agree with it."

Bishop Stephens also said that he felt the move would have "opened the floodgates", adding, "the ultimate question is where – does all of this end? From here, then to the school[s], to the teachers. Where does this really stop?"

Ms Fullilove expressed her regret at the failure of ENDO bill, which she reportedly claimed was due in part to "closed-minded" council members and lack of support from the Mayor of Memphis, A.C. Wharton.

TEP said that they would bring the issue before the mayor and city council again when they felt the ordinance had a chance of being taken seriously and fairly by the city's leaders.
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16 comments // Gay anti-discrimination ordinance is withdrawn in Tennessee at request of LGBT rights group

  • donkeyfly69
    • 0
      donkeyfly69  

    • i'm sure there is some gay closeted teen who wishes they went through with it anyway. if you always run from a fight, you'll never win a fight

    • 1 year ago
  • jubal
    • +2
      jubal  

    • So many parts of this country are completely out of touch with the issues of the LGBT community. They are informed only by their religious prejudice and not by a reasonable assessment of humanity.

    • 1 year ago
  • JohnA
    • 0
      JohnA  

    • Just for the record, Ms. Fulilove that withdrew the measure is black, as is Mayor Wharton and the majority of the Memphic city council she serves on.

    • 1 year ago
  • EthicalVegan
  • JohnA
    • 0
      JohnA  
    • EthicalVegan:

      Just saying before someone on Current blames cracker bible-thumping rednecks, hey we're out of this. In fact, if the few white people left in Memphis had been against this, the Memphis city council would have already passed it, that's the way they roll.

    • 1 year ago
  • donkeyfly69
  • JohnA
    • -2
      JohnA  
    • donkeyfly69:

      Nothing apparantly. I guess black people aren't as progressive as we've been led to believe. Seems they discriminate just as much as white people. How about that.

    • 1 year ago
  • donkeyfly69
    • 0
      donkeyfly69  
    • JohnA:

      seriously john, you're normally better than this. this issue has absolutely nothing to do with race and you're completely changing the subject

      do you have a comment about the actual article?

    • 1 year ago
  • JohnA
    • -1
      JohnA  
    • donkeyfly69:

      Just saying. Any article on Current about discrimination, especially one where the only picture is of the state flag of Tennessee, is assumed to be white racist southerners. That is not the case in this instance and since no pictures were posted, I wanted people to know that before they jumped to the usual Current conclusion that it was white southern bible-thumping rednecks doing the discriminating. They were not. Ms. Fulilove, Mayor Wharton, Ms. Bliss, and Bishop Stephens are all African-Americans.

    • 1 year ago
  • donkeyfly69
    • 0
      donkeyfly69  
    • JohnA:

      so you pulled a race card and made this issue about race? seriously you're so quick to call out everyone else's presumed racism (which still hasn't surfaced) and you're not realizing you're own prejudice.

    • 1 year ago
  • donkeyfly69
    • 0
      donkeyfly69  
    • JohnA:

      "Ms. Fulilove, Mayor Wharton, Ms. Bliss, and Bishop Stephens are all African-Americans."

      so what? they're still homophobic wastes of air. being black has nothing to do with this. why do you think their being black has any weight on the issue? you know the issue you still haven't once commented on? it seems as if you only posted to talk about race

      either way i don't mind, it just bumps this story up and gets it noticed more

    • 1 year ago
  • JohnA
  • donkeyfly69
  • JohnA
  • donkeyfly69
  • UtopianSky
    • +1
      UtopianSky  

    • So, they are going to wait till GLBT rights is taken seriously in Tennessee.
      So, we can plan for this in the year 2525.
      If man is still alive, if woman can survive.

    • 1 year ago
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