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Charleston Extends LBGT Protection
Without opposition from any council member, new non-discrimination ordinances
extended protections to citizens in housing and public accommodations were
passed by the Charleston City Council on Tuesday, Nov. 24.
The council adopted a new public accommodations ordinance prohibiting
discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin,
familial status, disability, age or sexual orientation, and extended an already
existing housing ordinance to prohibit discrimination on the basis of age,
sexual orientation and gender identity.
“The passing of these ordinances is consistent with Charleston’s historic
reputation as one of America’s friendliest cities and a place that is welcoming
to all people,” Victoria Middleton, executive director of the American Civil
Liberties Union of South Carolina, said in a press release. “And they also
affirm the constitutional principles shared by all Americans of
non-discrimination and equality under the law.”
The new ordinances passed without opposition, although one council member
abstained from voting. He said penalties for violating the ordinances weren’t
high enough.
The new ordinances were presented to the council in August by a coalition of
several LGBT and progressive organizations, including Charleston’s Alliance For
Full Acceptance, the South Carolina chapter of Stonewall Democrats, the South
Carolina Log Cabin Republicans, the American Civil Liberties Union and SC
Equality.
Charleston joins several other Southern cities with comprehensive human
rights ordinances, including Charleston W.Va., New Orleans, Atlanta, Covington,
ken., and Columbia, S.C.
Columbia and Charleston also have LGBT-inclusive protections for city
employees in place.
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