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REGULAR MEETING JULY 26, 2010 <br /> <br /> <br /> <br />Councilmember Henry Davis thanked everyone for coming tonight. He wished that they <br />had a turn out like tonight for every Council meeting. He stated that he is a Christian and <br />confessed to Christ at the age of nine (9); his father is a minister and he played the drums <br />in the church choir. He stated that is the fabric of who he is and he is not going to <br />separate those two. He stated that last year when the Mayor issued his Executive Order <br />he spoke out about it because the Council and the Administration were undergoing <br />Budget Hearings and there were budget crisis’ happening. People were being laid off, <br />budgets were being cut, paving projects were being reduced, pot holes were not being <br />fixed. He stated that the timing was wrong, and it did not deserve the time to be <br />discussed. He stated that his comments did not reflect the GLBT community; it reflected <br />that programs were being cut, community centers were going to be closing and a large <br />number of employees were going to be laid off. As an elected official, he felt it was his <br />civic duty to respond to the needs and concerns of the citizens of his district, not to <br />commend an executive order. He questioned whether or not the Human Rights <br />Commission will have the tools in place to enforce this amendment. As it stands he <br />believes right now that they don’t have the tools to enforce it. He stated that the city has <br />a hard enough time enforcing lawn parking and now we are going to get into the area of <br />trying to investigate and enforce a law regarding not being able to get a job or keep a job <br />based on their sexual orientation or gender identity. He stated that discrimination cases <br />are very tough to prove. There has to be very hard core evidence. He stated that his <br />parents told him from a very young age that if you are going to interview for a job that <br />you dress respectfully and are clean cut, hair cut, clean shaven. It’s a matter of getting <br />back to those basic things. He stated that he is not against the GLBT Community, he is <br />against the behavior and for that he will not be voting in favor of this bill. <br /> <br />Councilmember White stated that she personally believes that no one should be <br />discriminated against. However, she lives a life style that she has been brought up to <br />believe. She stated that she has received hundreds of e-mails regarding this bill. She <br />stated that this is the first time that the Council as a whole has met on this bill. She <br />believes that time is needed to continue discussion. She noted the concern regarding the <br />vagueness of this bill. Councilmember White stated that she would like to be able to <br />have the opportunity to work through some of these issues. She urged the continuance of <br />this bill. <br /> <br />Councilmember Oliver Davis stated that he would like to clear up some of the issues <br />regarding the vagueness of this bill. He stated that when it comes to race and religion it <br />is very clear that you cannot discriminate against. However, when it comes to sexual <br />orientation or gender identity it becomes vague. Since 1976, the Human Rights <br />Commission has been clear that not one case has been heard when it came to religion that <br />the issue has not be clear. They have always been able to determine what the issue was <br />regarding religious discrimination. He noted that in 34 years since the Commission has <br />been established it has not been documented that they had a hard time determining a <br />religious issue. He stated that he has a problem with people saying that the timing wasn’t <br />right on this bill. He stated that putting off the vote on this bill will only allow for the <br />continuance of discrimination. He stated that as a licensed social worker he believes in <br />the concept of restoration in many different ways. He stated that he is a Christian, born <br />and raised since he was a kid too. This subject is a separation of church and state. He <br />noted that there are several different religious beliefs on this Council alone, but he stated <br />that he has an obligation to separate his religious beliefs from those decisions that he <br />makes on the Council. He stated that he has received hundreds of e-mails on this issue, <br />some of the most hateful messages he has ever seen. He stated that he has received a lot <br />of e-mails in the past but this issue brought more vile e-mails then when they <br />implemented new taxes. He told his young daughter not to turn the computer on at home <br />for fear she would see some of the hurtful e-mails. He urged his fellow Councilmember’s <br />to consider further discussion to clear the issue of vagueness that has been brought up <br />tonight. <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> 13 <br /> <br />