OLATHE, Kan. — About half the people in a standing-room only crowd at Tuesday night’s Olathe, Kansas, city council meeting urged elected leaders to vote on adopting a non-discrimination ordinance (NDO) to protect the rights of the LGBT community.
Supporters want the city council to take up the issue at its next meeting on Dec. 3. The city has not yet finalized the agenda for that meeting.
“Vote to send a signal that everyone is welcome here, that this community can be whole no matter who lives here,” urged one man in favor of the NDO.
On the other hand, several people at the meeting asked council members not to adopt the NDO, calling it a waste of time that would create more problems than it would solve.
One man said courts have forced other cities to remove their ordinances.
“These reversals are taking years to work through the court system and are ultimately resulting in substantial reimbursement of legal and related expenses for the defendants [cities],” Kevin Gilmore pointed out.
Several Johnson County cities have adopted non-discrimination ordinances. The rules prevent businesses from firing employees based solely on their sexual orientation or gender identity. They also prevent businesses and housing authorities from discriminating against members of the LGBT community.
