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Loading ...Results of Utah gov. meeting with gay rights groups
10.07.2009 11:30am EDT
(Salt Lake City) Utah Gov. Gary Herbert met with gay rights advocacy groups Tuesday for the first time since saying he opposes providing legal protections for gay and transgender people.
Herbert took office in mid-August after Jon Huntsman resigned to become U.S. ambassador to China.Within weeks of his inauguration, Herbert said he doesn’t think it should be illegal to discriminate against someone for being gay or transgender.
In Utah, it’s currently legal to fire someone or evict them from housing for being gay. Herbert contends that discriminating against gay people is wrong – but says there’s no need for a law to prevent it.
He’s also expressed concerns that including gay and transgender people in anti-discrimination laws could enable a court to overturn the state’s constitutional ban on gay marriage and lead to other groups seeking protection.
“Where do you stop? I mean that’s the problem going down that slippery road. Pretty soon we’re going to have a special law for blue-eyed blondes … or people who are losing their hair a little bit,” Herbert told reporters in August. “There’s some support for about anything we put out there. I’m just saying we end up getting bogged down sometimes with the minutiae of things that government has really no role to be involved in.”
Twenty-one states have laws prohibiting workplace discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, and 12 extend those laws to gender identity – California, Colorado, Iowa, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington. Several other states protect public employees who are gay or transgender.
Leaders of the gay rights advocacy group Equality Utah said Herbert told them he’s open to having a dialogue about stopping discrimination.
“Fundamentally, he agrees that discrimination is a problem. We’re coming at this from how to solve a problem we agree on. That’s a great place to begin,” said Will Carlson, Equality Utah’s public policy director.
Carlson said Equality Utah members provided Herbert with information regarding housing and job discrimination in the state and spelled out the need for gay couples to have hospital visitation rights and the right to make emergency medical decisions.
Later Tuesday, Herbert met with the Foundation for Reconciliation, a group organized in June by current and former Mormons frustrated by their faith’s political activism in California. In 2008, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was part of a coalition of groups that worked to pass Proposition 8, a ballot initiative that banned gay marriage in California.
Foundation director Cheryl Nunn, who lives in both Utah and Santa Cruz, Calif., said the group’s executive committee is made up entirely of heterosexuals concerned about issues affecting LGBT individuals.
The foundation requested a meeting with Herbert following his comments about anti-discrimination laws. The group has asked Herbert to form a bipartisan task force to investigate inequality in Utah’s legal code toward lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals.
“He described himself as a conservative who was very wary about increasing government in any way,” foundation spokesman Peter Danzig said Tuesday night. “But he agreed with us that it’s hard to make public policy without accurate information.”
Danzig said that Herbert also said he doesn’t want Utah to be perceived as state that is rejecting or unwelcoming of any of its citizens.
Herbert spokeswoman Angie Welling said the point of Tuesday’s meetings was not to make any policy decisions.
“This is really an information gathering and kind of an introduction to one another so the conversation can continue,” Welling said.
Boycott Utah
It’s only an overture to try to stem the anti-mormon sentiment that is rising in this country. This coming from a cult that is based upon an indescribable language on invisible plates. Yeah, that’s normal. Boycott Utah? Why would you even go there? I’ve been to Utah and I can get more meaning out of pictures than actually going there. It’s like walking on the Moon.
Even IF there is a law that prevents discrimination based upon sexuality, no one will abide by it and there’s no way to know if they don’t. There’s no need for a law unless you can enforce it. Who would enforce this law, the Utah government? Yeah, that’ll work. What a joke.
I say, forget the boycott. Revoke their tax exempt status because LDS is NOT a religion but a cult. Besides, any entity that organizes for political purposes and invests $20M into that purpose is a political entity and NOT a religion and should not be entitled to a tax exempt status based upon religion. They can’t have it both ways. That’s flat out fraud!!
realy what says oregon does not discriminate when 1/2 the counties have laws passed by the voters.That allow job loss & eviction for gay people.I have been declined both housing & employment with in the past 3 years!
Maybe the beginning of an opening. In MD, on passage of a bill allowing gays to add a partner to their house deed without paying the transfer tax (easily 10000$) passed with one republican vote. The state senate minority leader. Because we talked with him, understood his issues etc.
And a fallout of his vote may be the real reason that the repub bigot woman who kept introing a bill to constitutionally ban gay marriage quit the senate to spend more time with her children.
You look for every opening, every chance to understand and have your opponents understand each other’s issues. And sometimes this helps make incremental progress.
Boycott Utah.
Kick the bigots out of power and maybe the money will return…
Well now meeting with an “enemy” does not necessarily you agree with their ideas. I am not quite sure how people can say it is a first step. A first step acknowledges that their is a problem. According to UTAH they do not have a problem so it is OK to continue to discriminate.
When you have religious zealots like the Mormons there is no first step either you are with them or they are against you period end of story.
I would suggest that anyone that is gay to get out of UTAH quickly and let them know why you are leaving. Yes it would make them happy but in the end it will make you happier.
I agree with the sentiment to boycott UTAH. What would be ideal is to get the US government to put its backbone in and step into the fray but that will not happen as we now have a President that has moved toward the rights intolerance of gays.
Don’t boycott Utah. It will only make life harder for LGBT Utahns. Help LGBT Utahns!
How many folks are harassed, beaten, killed, or commit suicide because they have blue eyes? I thought Hitler wanted everyone to have Blond Hair and Blue eyes.
a journey begins with one step. The govenor didn’t have to meet with Equality Utah. It’s a step forward on the journey. Let’s not predetermine what path the govenor will take. He is open to understanding and learning the facts of discrimination. Noone wants to believe they discriminate. We learn we do when we take a step to find out if we do or not. How he proceeds will determine whether he will continue on this journey or detour to the conservative camp.
They don’t want Utah to be *perceived* as being intolerant. But, on the other hand, they don’t mind being intolerant. Boycott Utah!