cityXtra Magazine

FINAL VOTE HRO ATLANTIC BEACH TONIGHT

Via Jacksonville Coaltion for Equality:
Final Vote on HRO Planned for
Atlantic Beach City Commission Meeting
on Monday, August 11

Jacksonville, FL (August 8, 2014)–Having survived months of discussion, a preliminary vote and two readings, the amended Human Rights Ordinance, No. 95-14-108, is one last vote away from passage in Atlantic Beach this coming Monday, August 11, 2014 when the City Commission holds its regularly scheduled Commission meeting. The meeting will begin at 6:30pm at the Atlantic Beach City Hall Commission Chamber, 800 Seminole Road.

The Jacksonville Coalition for Equality is urging Atlantic Beach residents and others interested in the Ordinance’s passage to attend and speak at the meeting and wear red in a show of solidarity for the bill.

The first vote, taken at the City Commission meeting held on July 14, passed 3-2. Commissioners voting in support of the amendment were Mayor Carolyn Woods, Commissioner Maria Mark and Commissioner Mayor Pro Tem, Mark Beckenbach. Voting against the amendment were Commissioner Jimmy Hill and Commissioner John Daugherty. The legislation was then moved forward after a second public reading at the Commission’s workshop on July 28. With a simple majority on Monday’s vote, the amended Ordinance will become law.

The proposed Atlantic Beach Human Rights Ordinance will add explicit protections for residents based on sexual orientation and gender identity or expression in employment, housing and public accommodation.

The Jacksonville Coalition for Equality (JCE) is a community group in Jacksonville working to bring area Human Rights Ordinances up-to-date and inclusive of the Lesbian, Gay Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community.

“Excitement is mounting and expectations are high,” said Dan Merkan, Chair of the JCE Steering Committee. The LGBT community in Northeast Florida, along with its numerous allies, feels like it’s being heard. The support we have received from all areas of the community has been gratifying. There has been tremendous community support from Atlantic Beach residents, straight allies and others who believe the amended Ordinance is right for their own community as well as an important first step to assuring equality for everyone in Northeast Florida. Atlantic Beach and the City Commissioners who have worked to pass this legislation are to be commended for their courage and commitment. We are cautiously optimistic that we will have an important milestone to celebrate on Monday evening.”

About the Jacksonville Coalition for Equality

The Jacksonville Coalition for Equality grew out of the Jacksonville Committee for Equality, the group that led the 2012 effort to pass an amended human rights ordinance in Jacksonville that would have, if passed, added protections from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity and expression in the workplace, housing, and public accommodation. The Jacksonville Coalition for Equality consists of many organizations including Jacksonville Chapter of the National Organization for Women (NOW), Human Rights Campaign, Equality Florida, the LGBT Resource Center at the University of North Florida, We Are Straight Allies, PFLAG Jacksonville, JASMYN, and OneJax as well as many other civic leaders, businesses and business owners, faith leaders and individuals. More information about the JCE is available at https://www.facebook.com/jaxequality.