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Why we need PA HB 300

North Dakota is on a path similar to Pennsylvania, and the linked post below is about that. I often think about states out west like that as being “all conservative” and so I appreciate the reminder to see things as they are as opposed to fall back on (often) false assumptions. Or, the other side of it, is recognize how far behind Pennsylvania is?

This story is out of the linked post and is a great illustration of why protections in housing, employment and public accommodation is important:

Gina Powers received a knock on the door of her West Fargo apartment in the winter of 2002, an apartment she shared with her partner Stephani and her then eight-year-old daughter, Cheryl. Gina, recovering from an abdominal surgery, waited as Stephani answered the door to find the landlord there.

“Basically, he came to the door and said, ‘Yeah, you guys are out of here,’” Powers said. “There was no other explanation for it.”

Conversations with neighbors after the fact only acted to bolster her initial assumptions that she and Stephani had been asked to leave because they are homosexual.

There are 2 other points I’d like to pull out of this post, but please read the whole post below.

The New Mexico Photographer

This case was raised at the public hearing for the Allegheny County ordinance as well.  In brief, a N.M. photographer who is a Christian and runs her business with her husband was contacted by a gay couple to photograph at their wedding. The photographer said, no, that they only photograph traditional weddings. The photographer was sued for discrimination, and the photographer lost.

Every time I see this reported, the photographer is portrayed as an individual, and the reason behind her discriminating behavior is her personal religious beliefs. But in reality, this is a story about a business, which has the privilege to do business and the business acted in a discriminatory manner. Imagine if the business had said, we don’t photograph blacks, or we don’t photograph muslims, or Jews. businesses don’t have religious beliefs, individuals do.

Already Protected?

The second issue I want to pull out is the argument, that people are already protected under the law, so the legislation is unneccesary.  as Fiebiger (Quoted in the post) says,

I would challenge them to show me where that is,” Fiebiger said, “because I would love to find it.

The Concordian – N.D. Senate amends discrimination policy to include sexual orientation.