Issue 3: The Last Appeal
by Lycette Nelson, Executive Director, Stonewall
Cincinnati, 10/12/98
This is it, folks. No more waiting, no more wondering. Soon,
it will be reality one way or another. The Supreme Court is back
at work, and we are expecting a decision about on Issue 3 within
the next month. It is a very scary time for all of us. Although
logic would lead one to think that the Court, based on its own
ruling in the Colorado Amendment 2 case, would have to overrule
the Sixth Circuit Court's ruling upholding Issue 3, logic would
also have told us that the Sixth Circuit could not uphold its
own ruling after Romer v. Evans, the Colorado case.
For those of you who have not followed all of the five-year long
windings of this case, here's a brief summary. Issue 3 is a 1993
amendment to the city's charter that would prohibit the city
from passing any legislation giving protected class status on
the basis of sexual orientation. Issue 3 was passed by a large
majority of the vote. However, it was immediately appealed and
has never gone into effect. City Council, however, removed sexual
orientation from the list of protections granted by the city's
Human Rights Ordinance in 1994. In the meantime, the case has
been through an extremely lengthy appeals process that has now
taken it back to the Supreme Court.
So, we are now faced with several possible scenarios.
#1 We Win: The Court overturns the Sixth Circuit Court ruling
on Issue 3. We are mad with joy, party in the streets and then
get down to the business of lobbying City Council to include
sexual orientation and gender identity in the existing Human
Rights Ordinance, giving GLBT people protection against discrimination
in employment, housing and public accommodation.
#2 + #3 We lose. We could lose two ways: 1) the Court doesn't
take the case, meaning that the Sixth Circuit Court decision
stands without any further ruling; 2) the Court takes the case
and upholds the lower court's ruling.
An Issue 3 strategy committee has been meeting for the last several
months to determine what we will do whichever way the decision
goes and have been soliciting support from other community organizations,
public officials and business leaders .
If we win, our next step is clear: work hard to find a fifth
vote in our favor on the current council, or start working toward
next year's council election now to make sure we have five votes
in our favor on the next council.
If we lose, we have only one alternative: repeal Issue 3 through
a referendum. This is sure to be an ugly and costly battle. But
who can live with Issue 3 and do nothing? If Issue 3 stands,
Cincinnati will be the only city in the country in which it is
legal to deny one group of people equal protection under the
law. This is sure to hurt the city (and the region) economically,
just at a time when Cincinnati is attempting to establish itself
as a "global" presence. More than that, however, it
is a denial of the most basic of civil rights.
So what can you do, right now? Here are a few simple things:
* Make sure we know how to reach you fast. If you are not currently
a member but receive our mailings, you might want to get on our
email alert list so we can get you news fast.
* Tell everyone you know about Issue 3 and the decision that
is coming up. People need to know that this is coming!! Talk
about it to your coworkers, your neighbors, your family and members
of your church or synagogue.
* Join Stonewall. Stonewall's staff will be devoting a lot of
time to this effort over what could be a prolonged period of
time. If you support this effort, please support us. We have
membership levels as low as $10. If you are already a member,
there could not be a better time to raise your membership level.
We must all come together now to finish this fight.
A victory party or repeal kickoff will be held at the Pipeline,
241 W Court St., when the Supreme Court decision is announced.
Watch this site, listen to the news, stay tuned.
