Charter Amendment One (Gainesville, Florida)

Amendment 1
Amendment to the City Charter Prohibiting the City from Providing Certain Civil Rights
Results Votes % Yes 8,382 7001416700000000000♠41.67% No 11,732 7001583300000000000♠58.33% Valid votes 20,114 7001994200000000000♠99.42% Invalid or blank votes 118 6999579990000000000♠0.58% Total votes 20,232 100.00% Registered voters/turnout 75,219 7001269000000000000♠26.9%
Source: Alachua County Supervisor of Elections[1]

Charter Amendment One was a citizen led referendum defeated in Gainesville, Florida's city election on March 24, 2009. Titled the "Amendment to the City Charter Prohibiting the City from Providing Certain Civil Rights", the measure would remove the legal protections not explicitly covered under the Florida Civil Rights Act of 1992, specifically with reference to sexual orientation and gender identity.^[2]

The amendment was a key issue of debate in the elections and attracted national attention to social controversies in Gainesville, Florida that continued through the mayoral election in 2010.

The amendment was viewed as a test of LGBT rights in Florida following the passage of Florida Amendment 2 which banned same-sex unions the previous year.

History

In January 2008, the Gainesville City Commission narrowly voted to add gender identity to the list of protected groups in its city discrimination ordinance.^[3] Gainesville's discrimination ordinance forbids discrimination in access to public accommodation, housing, credit and employment for ten different categories.^[4]

Sexual orientation was briefly added as a protected category on the county level in April 1993 with 3 out of 5 county commissioners supporting it, but was later overturned by citizen referendum in the fall elections of 1994.^[5][6] In 1998, the city of Gainesville voted to add sexual orientation to the city discrimination ordinance, a move that was met with little opposition.^[7]

The Group Citizens for Good Public Policy organized a campaign to remove both gender identity and sexual orientation from the charter citing fears that loose gender laws would make it easier for men to infiltrate bathrooms designated for women and girls.^[8] By July 2008, they had collected enough signatures to place a referendum on the 2009 city ballot.^[9]

Campaigns

Both proponents and opponents of the measure had assistance from interest groups. The PAC Citizens for Good Public Policy supported the measure with aid from the Thomas More Law Center, a conservative law centre.

The primary opposition arose from Equality is Gainesville's Business, which had the support of the American Civil Liberties Union.^[10]

Political Aftermath

In 2010, Gainesville's mayoral race featured Don Marsh, a conservative who had vocally supported Charter Amendment One and Craig Lowe, a city commissioner who had voted in favor of adding gender identity to the city charter.^[11]

A runoff election resulted in Craig Lowe being narrowly elected Gainesvilles's first openly gay mayor by a margin of 42 votes.^[12]

To express their opposition to Lowe's campaign, controversial Dove World Outreach Center displayed a sign reading "No homo Mayor" before amending the statement to read "No homo." The sign was modified after warnings that adopting a political stance could cause them to lose their tax-exempt status.^[13]

References