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I’ve never done this before, but for my post today, I want to redirect you to a post I wrote last week following the Allegheny County Council meeting where the county’s nondiscrimination ordinance was passed. I wrote this post to add some commentary about how various council members votes- those who our diverse communities need to now thank and those we need to, in thew short term, shame, and in the long term replace. The only addition, is Nicholas Futules, who was out of town for the vote, but who was supportive, and who was present last night at the signing ceremony. Please thank him as well.

Allegheny County Ordinance: Who to Thank and Who to Shame

I was a bit dismayed when speaking to Futeles last evening. The council persons are still getting lots of calls on this from the opposition who are claiming a slew of totally crazy stuff as to what this ordinance will mean. Here are my favorite two:

1. Men will be able to go into a restroom to be violent against women, and when caught, say they think they are women, and be let go. This is so ludicrous it isn’t funny. You know what is pathetic about this? First, is the fact that someone would ever suggest this is the case. We have groups like the American Family Association of PA (AFAPA) to thank for that part of it. But the really pathetic part is that anyone believes this hogwash enough to repeat it. Violence against women or children is never acceptable or “allowed” no matter who perpretrates it, how they are dressed, or what their gender identity may or may be suggested to be.
2. The bill protects sexual orientation and gender identity and expression. So crazy right wingnuts say that this means it protects those who have any assortment of philias (such as necrophilia). This would be funny if it too weren’t so sad. These wingnuts don’t seem to be able to discern the difference between sexual orientations (of which there are only 3- heterosexual, homosexual, and bisexual) and psychosexual disorders.

Futeles is considering countering this with an op-ed perhaps, or at the least a form letter than can be mailed out. The role we can play- those of us who are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered- is to be out of the closet, and let others know us for who we are. Some wingnuts are going to believe whatever they are going to believe, but there is a vast majority of people out there who can see us for who we really are, if we let them.