Date: Fri, 21 Apr 1995 11:13:49 -0500 (CDT)
From: Kevyn Jacobs <kevyn@KSUVM.KSU.EDU>
To: "Kansas Queer News [KQN]" <KQN@casti.com>
Subject: NT: LAWRENCE POISED TO ADOPT HUMAN RIGHTS ORDINANCE


FROM THE NEWS-TELEGRAPH
FRONT PAGE
APRIL 14-27, 1995
=======================

Lawrence Poised To
Adopt Rights Ordinance

by Lisa Marie Neff

LAWRENCE KS-Activists here believe the city commission will amend
the city's human rights ordinance to ban discrimination on the
basis of sexual orientation sometime in April or May.

And the general election just might have been the deciding
factor.

Three out of six people were elected in the general election, and
two of those newly-elected commissioners--incumbent John
Nalbandian and Alan Levine--were supported by Lesbian and Gay
rights activists and plan to vote for the amendment. Voters
ousted Doug Compton, the commissioner who initially waffled on
his position on the proposed amendment and then announced plans
to push it to a vote before the election, when it appeared the
amendment was headed for defeat. And the candidate who seemed to
run his race as a campaign against the amendment and Simply Equal
finished in last place.

"The election outcome was very favorable to us," said Ben
Zimmerman, of Simply Equal. "The two candidates that were running
in favor of us were both elected and all of the far-right or
religious right candidates were voted down."

Zimmerman said it appears that a majority on the new commission
support the amendment. If that is the case, Lawrence could become
the only city in Kansas with a Lesbian and Gay rights ordinance
in place.

Zimmerman's interpretation of the election is this: Lawrence
citizens will "not tolerate bigotry" and "many people see the
election as a referendum on Simply Equal and the supporters of
Simply Equal won."

Zimmerman and other amendment supporters expect the commission to
vote on the amendment soon. In the meantime, Simply Equal will be
preparing for possible hearings. "That is our big thing right
now," Zimmerman said, adding that a fight remains with the
religious right citizens of Lawrence. "We've got to be prepared."