Jacksonville, Florida, LGBT Anti-discrimination Referendum (2016)
| Jacksonville LGBT Anti-discrimination Referendum |
|---|
|
| The basics |
| Election date: |
| Unknown |
| Status: |
| Not on the ballot |
| Topic: |
| Local LGBT issues |
| Related articles |
| Local LGBT issues on the ballot Local ballot measures, Florida Duval County, Florida ballot measures Local ballot measure elections in 2016 |
| See also |
| Jacksonville, Florida Municipal elections in Jacksonville, Florida (2015) |
An LGBT anti-discrimination referendum was not put on the ballot for Jacksonville voters in Duval County, Florida, in 2016.
If approved, this measure would have shown voter support for a city ordinance prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression. City Councilman Bill Gulliford proposed this referendum, arguing that a decision by the voters would be more final and would result in better representation of the peoples' will than an ordinance approved by the city council. City Councilman Tommy Hazouri opposed a voter referendum, arguing that the city council should make the decision themselves. Hazouri proposed his own legislation for a city council ordinance to enact the anti-discrimination provisions, arguing, "That’s why we’re all elected, to make those tough decisions. If he [Gulliford] is not brave enough to make that tough decision on his own, then shame on him.”[1]
Gulliford's office released a statement when he filed the bill, saying, "It begs the fundamental question: Is it right that as few as 10 council members could decide the outcome of this very contentious issue without knowing the majority sentiment? In short, with the depth of participation already demonstrated, should citizens have a say on this beyond just public forums? Or do we vote on it as council members somewhat influenced by our conscience, personal bias or intense lobbying?”[1]
Councilman John Crescimbeni said he generally supports letting voters make decisions themselves, but he was worried that even a voter decision would not settle this issue with finality. Crescimbeni said, “I think it would be a very close election, and I think the losers, the day after election, would immediately begin a campaign to undo what had just been approved or not approved. I just don’t see this topic going away once and for all with a referendum.”[1]
Background
Statistics and polls
| Florida metros: LGBT populations[2] | ||
|---|---|---|
| City | LGBT percent of population | |
| Jacksonville | 4.3% | |
| Miami | 4.2% | |
| Orlando | 4.1% | |
| Tampa | 4.0% | |
| National average | 3.5% | |
| Florida average | 3.5% | |
In 2012, the city council rejected an ordinance designed to expand anti-discrimination laws to members of the LGBT community. Councilman Gulliford opposed that legislation in 2012. Gulliford said that he received 11,271 emails about the proposed ordinance before the council vote in 2012.[1]
The University of North Florida released a survey in March 2015 showing that 62 percent of registered voters in Jacksonville supported an LGBT anti-discrimination measure, though the survey also revealed that it was not a top priority for most citizens.[3] The Jacksonville metro area has the highest percentage of LGBT citizens in Florida and the 15th-highest in the country.[4]
The big picture
Local politics has always been affected by larger agendas and issues, as well as outside interests and funding. In local ballot measure races, the influence of state or national interests on local issues has been brought into sharp relief when advocates for certain statewide and national agendas or outside corporations back local measures. As this occurs more frequently and in races that garner national attention, the use of local ballot measures to advance a statewide or national agenda has become an important narrative in U.S. politics.
Support
Supporters
City Councilman Tommy Hazouri expressed support for protections against discrimination, but he opposed the idea of putting the issue before voters. He proposed legislation by which the city council could enact an anti-discrimination ordinance without a citywide election.[1]
The Jacksonville Coalition for Equality supports an anti-discrimination ordinance. Jimmy Midyette, a leader of the group, said that the city council should step up and decide the issue. He argued, "There's a reason that civil rights measures and issues of human rights aren't voted on by the majority. Often these are issues that impact the minority. It's not appropriate to have the majority vote on the rights of the minority."[5]
Arguments in favor
Supporters of LGBT anti-discrimination ordinances argue that such ordinances extend basic human rights to a minority that often falls victim to prejudice.
Opposition
Opponents
A group of pastors in the city announced their opposition to any ordinance providing protections based on sexual orientation or gender identity. The group asked the city council to put the issue before voters and said they would support a signature petition campaign for a veto referendum if the city council passed the ordinance themselves. Pastor Fred Newbill, who serves the First Timothy Baptist Church, said, "We cannot and will not support any ordinance that is driven by sexual orientation."[5]
Arguments against
Opponents of LGBT anti-discrimination ordinances argue that the law could infringe on freedom of religion rights and that it could be abused by men seeking access to women's restrooms, locker rooms and showers.[5]
Path to the ballot
Councilman Bill Gulliford proposed legislation to put this issue before voters. A competing proposal to directly enact an LGBT anti-discrimination ordinance without going to the voters was also introduced in the city council. Gulliford insisted that, even if the city council approved such an ordinance themselves, citizens would ultimately collect signatures to force a veto referendum and voters would end up making the decision at the polls. Both bills were withdrawn from consideration in the council in February 2016. But the bills were able to be reintroduced at a later point in the year.[1][6]
Related articles
- City of Springfield Sexual Orientation and Transgender Anti-Discrimination Ordinance Veto Referendum, Question 1 (April 2015)
- City of Houston Anti-Discrimination HERO Veto Referendum, Proposition 1 (November 2015)
- City of Fayetteville LGBT "Uniform Civil Rights Protection Ordinance," Ordinance 5781 (September 2015)
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Jacksonville LGBT referendum. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 The Florida Times-Union, "City Council members Bill Gulliford, Tommy Hazouri plan requests over LGBT referendums," December 16, 2015
- ↑ Gallup, "San Francisco Metro Area Ranks Highest in LGBT Percentage," March 20, 2015
- ↑ The Florida Times-Union, "UNF poll finds voters back HRO expansion, open to tax increases and rate crime top concern," March 9, 2015
- ↑ The New York Times, "The Metro Areas With the Largest, and Smallest, Gay Populations," March 20, 2015
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 News4Jax, "Pastors want public vote on HRO amendment," December 10, 2015
- ↑ News4Jax, "City Council votes to withdraw HRO bills," February 18, 2016
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