A.G. Gancarski
In a Tuesday letter to Mayor Lenny Curry, the Anti-Defamation League offered its “strong support of a comprehensive Jacksonville Human Rights Ordinance.”
“In the 21st Century,” the letter, signed by Florida ADL Regional Director Hava Holzhauer, asserts, “no person should be subject to employment, housing, or public accommodations discrimination on the basis of any immutable characteristic, including sexual orientation or gender identity.”
The ADL goes on to assert that Jacksonville “cannot wait for Tallahassee,” adding that opposition “based on religious freedom or safety measures” is “specious and without merit.”
The current HRO, the letter adds, “strikes an appropriate balance between religious freedom and civil rights by providing multiple exemptions and exceptions to religious institutions and employers.”
As well, the ADL letter takes issue with the assertion that HRO bills open the door to a “public safety threat” as “completely unfounded,” saying that 28 cities and counties have similar legislation, and there is no record of individuals using the bill as a “vehicle to commit crimes,” especially given the laws on the books prohibiting such behavior.
On a day when the mayor’s mail also included a letter from a private resident, sent in opposition to proposed legislation, which asserted that homosexuals engage in coprophagy with their partners, it’s clear that the mayor’s office is hearing from both sides of this issue. One wonders whether the opponents who write such letters understand how ridiculous their arguments sound, however.
