Human rights ordinance proposed at Union Township town hall meeting
A human rights ordinance for the Charter Township of Union was presented at Wednesday night's town hall meeting.
Norma Bailey, president of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Central Michigan, and United Methodist church Reverend David Hills teamed up to give the presentation.
The ordinance, No. 2012-06 called "Human Rights," would not be the first in the area, as such ordiances exist on the campus of Central Michigan University as well as in the city of Mount Pleasant, as previously reported by Central Michigan Life.
As stated in the ordinance, “the township intends that no individual be denied the enjoyment of his or her civil rights or be discriminated against because of his or her race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sex, age, marital status, physical or mental disability, family status, sexual orientation or gender identity.”
“As a business owner, it is perfectly normal to kick someone out of a restaurant because of their sexual orientation,” Bailey said. However, this ordinance would protect citizens from situations similar that may occur.
The purpose, would be for everyone to be able to be safe and contribute to their social and economic life in the township.
A 2010 poll conducted by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research reported 65 persent of Michigan voters support basic rights of employment, housing and public accommodations for people who are LGBT. On Nov. 19, 2011, the same survey was conducted amongst Mount Pleasant voters: 88 percent of the voters support these basic rights.
“We are not in search of a solution for a problem,” Hills said. “People in our society don’t recognize that all means all. The discrimination based on a person's innate being is beneath who we are as humans.”
This are currently 701 supporters of the ordinance living in the 48858 zip code; 13 community leaders, eight business leaders, nine clergy and faith groups and 11 CMU students, faculty and administration.
This ordinance has yet to be approved but remains under consideration.
