A Bowling Green group is again seeking expanded protections for the LGBT community.
The Bowling Green Fairness Coalition Tuesday night delivered the signatures of over 1,000 residents asking the city commission to amend the local civil rights ordinance. The group wants to outlaw discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals in employment, housing, and public accommodations.
Bowling Green landlord Don Langley was one of three speakers to address the commission on behalf of expanding the city's Fairness Ordinance, which currently bans discrimination based on factors such as race, ethnicity, age, and disability. Langley says his experiences with LGBT renters led him to believe that discriminating against them is wrong.
“They pay their rent on time, they work hard, they have jobs, and they’re tax paying citizens," Langley said after he addressed the commission. "I think they should be treated fairly.”
This is the third time the Fairness Coalition has asked the Bowling Green City Commission to vote on an expanded civil rights ordinance. So far, it hasn’t come up for a vote.
Western Kentucky University graduate student Meghan Maddern also believes Bowling Green should become the ninth Kentucky city to include protections for LGBT individuals in its Fairness Ordinance.
“The fact that you can get fired or kicked out of your house in Bowling Green for just being assumed to be LGBT is ridiculous," she said.
The eight Kentucky cities that protect the LGBT community from discrimination are Covington, Danville, Frankfort, Lexington, Louisville, Midway, Morehead, and Vicco.
