This post is by Brendan Joel Kelley.
On Monday, August 17, our newly elected mayor—conservative Dan Sullivan (it’s a non-partisan office, so D and R don’t apply)—vetoed a gay rights ordinance that the Anchorage Assembly had voted 7-4 to approve on Tuesday, August 11. Although the veto expected from Sullivan, it came as a blow to those committed to making Anchorage a progressive city like many of its West Coast counterparts.
Proposition 64, which would have added gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people to the city’s current anti-discrimination ordinance, protecting them from discrimination in the sale or rental of property, financing practices, employment practices, public accommodations, educational institutions, and practices of the municipality, was introduced on May 12 by then-Acting Mayor Matt Claman, an uncharismatic assemblyman who temporarily succeeded former Mayor Mark Begich after Begich was elected as a Democratic U.S. Senator in November. During Claman’s brief tenure—January through June—the gay rights proposition was the only notable move he made.
The introduction of the proposition precipitated a series of antagonistic hearings at the bi-weekly assembly meetings. It divided our community into bible-thumping, fag bashing “red shirts”—convinced that there’s already an epidemic of cross-dressing men pissing and perving in ladies rooms—and the more pacifist “blue shirts,” who were more prone to dancing to techno DJs on the lawn outside than having their pre-teen children hoist hateful signs. Opposition to the ordinance was led by notorious asshole Jerry Prevo, a local televangelist and pastor of the Anchorage Baptist Temple, one of the largest churches in Anchorage. Prevo canceled his services one Wednesday night so his followers could flood the special assembly meeting that was called to accommodate the surge of citizens wanting to testify about the ordinance (some acquaintances of mine advocated for taking advantage of the empty ABT and hosting a gay orgy in its parking lot).
The chair of the Anchorage assembly, conservative Debbie Ossiander, allowed people to sign up for months to testify before the assembly—and you didn’t have to be a resident of Anchorage, so lots of people were bussed in from Sarah Palin’s hometown of Wasilla (guess what color shirts they wore)—and after several meetings it seemed to be a virtual red shirt filibuster.
Outside the assembly chambers both sides loudly voiced their opinions—the red shirts with signs such as “when the ‘Gay Agenda’ destroys Civil Liberties everyone loses!!!” and “I was born black you choose 2B gay”; the blue shirts fought back with community potlucks, virtual raves on the lawn, and rainbow colored signs declaring their allegiance to equality. Conservative talk radio personalities railed against the ordinance as well, declaring that it provided “special rights” for the gay and transgender community—in a column last Sunday in the daily newspaper, one of those talking heads compared homosexuals to habitual swearers. (Creative analogy, fucker.)
Nonetheless, the assembly, which is split 6-5 in favor of progressives (including Claman, now returned to his assembly seat), passed the ordinance last week, but with the support of only one conservative, South Anchorage Assemblywoman Jennifer Johnston. Ossiander, the chair, had been a wild card. There was hope that she’d put a little compassion in her conservatism, but she ultimately voted against the proposition. The assembly could possibly override the mayor’s veto within 21 days with an 8th vote, but proponents on the assembly don’t expect Ossiander to change her vote.
The proposition is the most contentious civil rights issue in the city of Anchorage since the last time the issue of gay rights came before city government in the ’90s (a similar proposition passed in 1990, but was repealed in 1993). Prior to that, Mayor Sullivan’s father, Mayor George Sullivan, vetoed a similar ordinance in 1975. The younger Sullivan assumed office on July 1, and was widely expected by his conservative constituents to veto this ordinance if the assembly passed it, although the political gossip was that he wanted nothing to do with this issue. The pro-gay rights coalition of businesses, churches, and political organizations, along with the Alaska chapter of the American Civil Liberties, known as Equality Works, held out hope that Sullivan would let the assembly’s vote stand.
But Sullivan replaced a popular Democrat in the largest city in our notoriously red state (see: Palin, Sarah), and has to be Super-Glued to his conservative base if he ever hopes to win reelection (or replace Begich as a U.S. senator; Begich is the first Dem congressional delegate Alaska’s had since wacky ol’ Senator Mike Gravel, who lost his seat in 1981). Sullivan said on Friday that feedback since the assembly passed the ordinance had been three-to-one in favor of him vetoing it, and the press release announcing his veto said he’d received nearly 2,500 communications regarding the ordinance.
“As elected officials,” Sullivan said in his press release, “we are charged with reflecting the will of the community in our decisions, particularly in the absence of compelling data that would supersede that will.”
It’s now expected that Equality Works and supporters of including GLBT people in the city’s anti-discrimination ordinance will pursue an initiative to put the issue on the ballot for the next municipal election next April. Proponents of gay rights are hopeful that the electorate in Anchorage support the definition of diversity that still appears on the city’s website: “Diversity in this Administration’s book means, in addition to differences based on ethnicity, gender, age, religion, disability, national origin and sexual orientation…” But since Prevo and his red shirt brigade were standing at the ready to launch their own initiative removing gay rights from the anti-discrimination ordinance if Sullivan hadn’t vetoed it, it’s hard to predict what’ll happen when the voters hit the polls.
As I type this, friends of mine are rallying outside of City Hall in downtown Anchorage expressing their disdain for the mayor’s veto; a gay friend on his way to work at one of our few gay bars in town just called, upset, and asked me what he could do. I had to honestly answer that I have no idea.
Brendan Joel Kelley is associate editor of the Anchorage Press (www.anchoragepress.com), the alternative weekly in Anchorage, Alaska. He can be reached at bjk@anchoragepress.com.
@46: Well, considering a large number of Alaska-bound ships come out of extremely liberal Vancouver, B.C. and Seattle, I think we can manage something if we had to.
Baconcat…
Go for it,, please,, I mean it,, do your best.. Take it as a challenge. I dare you,, stop tourism to Alaska.. This Alaskan wouldn’t be more happy. In my opinion the lower 48 can take a hike and just bugger out. Please,, get the government to stop sending us money,, just let us run our state the way we want to and we won’t have any problems.
@52: No, you’re a great bunch of oilcows for us.
You’re the soylent green of states.
Baconcat @ 44,
You’re trying to use reason, not going to work. She’s defalted to her threats, I used to support things like ENDA and the Matthew Sheppard Act, but now you’ve all made me mad and I can’t support you anymore. It’s her delusion that we kow to her, to keep her support and her fellow like minded individuals. If we don’t honor her wishes, she’s frees herself to promote violence and the loss of equal employment rights by supporting the opposition. In her mind, it’s our fault that we don’t have her support. Just like she went on a couple of months claiming that she supports DPs with the same exact benifits as long as they aren’t called marriages. Then turned around and supported Randall and co. financially, and is screaming about possible persecution due to R 71. We play her way, or she takes her ball and runs home. I say we leave her to her ball and sand box. Everytime, we counter her she adds another gold star to her martyr cap. Besides, bullies often leave when they are ignored.
I’ve got a plane to catch. Sorry for the typos.
rewind:
Baconcat @ 48,
Dan Sullivan probably thought he was doing the family name proud! After all his father, then mayor of Anchorage, vetoed a similar bill in 1976. Could it be that being closed-minded and small is also not a choice, but an inherited trait?
I love the transparency of your writing! Thanks for this article; there is a lot to do for us, who believe in equality (no need to be gay or straight in order to have a sense of common good… I guess that comes just by being, BEING)
@34 FarNotth – I don’t know what you consider hate to be, but here’s what the dictionary says:
Hate (v., tr.):
1a) To feel hostility or animosity toward.
1b) To detest.
2) To feel dislike or distaste for.
You say, “I hate no one.” Just because Jesus tells you not to hate anyone doesn’t mean you don’t actually hate anyone. That’s not how it works, unless you are a saint. You’re a sinner, right? Don’t feel bad – we all are.
Anyway, I hope you can see how saying that adding rights for homosexuals in your state is equal to the ruin of your state fits the definition of hate – at least as far as definitions 1a) and 2) are concerned. And 1b) might not be a stretch for you, either – it might be worth some personal reflection, at any rate.
Go in peace!
I’m glad you guys care so much. Its been quite the struggle here.
What really irritates me is how quickly the people are here to deny the basic rights of their peers, while destroying their families with drug and alcohol abuse. Because its ok to get drunk, beat your children and pass out as long as you go to church on Sunday.
From an Anchorage-ite: EMAIL MY ASSEMBLY!
When developing your email(s) or preparing for your calls to Assembly Members please:
• Be Polite.
• Be Thoughtful.
• Ask all of them to OVERRIDE the Mayor’s veto.
• On emails, please include in your subject line the action you would like them to take.
• Include all your contact information
Please contact the eight Assembly members listed below regardless of district, past votes, political leanings, and/or public statements. After you contact these Assembly Members, please invite others in the community to do the same.
Let’s make sure that all our Assembly members know that there is broad support in the community for an inclusive non-discrimination ordinance like AO-64.
Assembly Member Email/Contact Information
Debbie Ossiander
ossiander@gci.net
h: 907.688.2308
vm: 907.343.4113
Patrick Flynn
flynnpp@muni.org
h: 907.278.8462
w: 907.265.2206
Harriet Drummond
harrietdrummond@alaska.com
h: 907.279.7763
Elvi Gray-Jackson
gray-jacksone@muni.org
vm: 907.343.4118
Sheila Selkregg
sheilaselkregg@alaska.com
h: 907.338.3636
Mike Gutierrez
gutierrezm@muni.org
907.382.5972
Jennifer Johnston
jjohnston@gci.net
h: 907.346.1087
Matt Claman
mattclaman@gmail.com
h: 907.248.5472
c: 907.350.5481
Thank you for your effort and continuous support. Please feel free to share/repost this message so that others may act in favor of ending discrimination in Anchorage and supporting the Anchorage LGBT community.
#52: Then ask your state to STOP TAKING MORE FEDERAL MONEY PER CAPITA THAN ANY OTHER. We will gladly “leave you alone” when you and the Wyomings and Utahs stop being the national welfare states that drain tax money from the areas of the country where there is actually a real economy.
hey,, Free Lunch,, so how is it you know why I think the way I do? You assume I don’t hate anyone because Jesus tells me not to? You truely know me well enough to say what I do or don’t feel and why I feel that way? Get over yourself already.
1. to dislike intensely or passionately; feel extreme aversion for or extreme hostility toward; detest: to hate the enemy; to hate bigotry.
2. to be unwilling; dislike: I hate to do it.
–verb (used without object) 3. to feel intense dislike, or extreme aversion or hostility.
–noun 4. intense dislike; extreme aversion or hostility.
5. the object of extreme aversion or hostility.
Do you notice the use of “extreme”, “intensely” and “passionately”?
I have no extreme, intense or pasionate feelings against gay people. Unlike what I see coming from your side of the argument. Things like:
“When teenagers, my friends and I had a policy that we’d flip off the Anchorage Baptist Temple whenever we’d drive by”
or
“Can we use Alaska to test some ICBM’s? I mean just to see if they work and all.”
I can find more true examples of hate if you like.
What about my rights as a property owner or a business owner? Do your rights trump my rights? No! If I don’t believe in the gay lifestyle why should I be forced to rent my property or hire you to work in my business? I’m not saying you can’t live your chosen lifestyle, I’m just saying I’m not going to condone it on my property or in my business.
So,, boycott away,, I still won’t rent to gays and I still won’t hire them to work in my business.
SpecialBrew,,,, your funny “a real economy” lol,, just do some checking on how the states different economies are doing… Especially the states run by the libs,, California,, they’re in great shape right now,, lol.. funny..
Equal Rights. Is that really too much to ask?
@ 62 Ah but you’re still missing the point. The mere use of the phrase “gay lifestyle” makes it obvious that you can’t understand that sexuality isn’t a choice. I never once thought to myself “hmm, I think I’ll be straight”, and I bet you didn’t either. And neither would any sane homosexual person, considering that people like you are out to lessen their quality of life. Race, color, and physical impairment are all things you cannot discriminate against, all things you cannot control. Exactly. Like. Sexuality. Oh, and if you’re so proud to keep your business and property gay-free, please, by all means, share with us the name and address of your business so we can boycott it, seeing as how being a bigot is your chosen lifestyle, one which I, and millions of other people will NEVER condone.
@62
Is it so hard to figure out that when you refuse to hire or rent to a specific group of people, they will respond with anger? And then fight for equal treatment?
@62: There’s a difference between comments on the internet and legislating your point of view. Oh, and I have to point out that one’s choice in religion reaps the benefit of selective association and tax breaks. That’s a special privilege and an invented right, especially when framed in the context of the religion of the founding fathers, most of whom held a lot of disdain towards granting the clergy special rights like we’ve slowly begun to do since the early 1900s.
I’ll patiently wait for Alaska to come around. Or for the natives (no, you aren’t a native) to revolt. Either way, you’re skee-rewed..,,
Reg @5 makes a valid point (albeit a generalization, I’d love statistics to see if it’s a gross one). As noted in the movie Insomnia, “There are two kinds of people in Alaska: those who were born here and those who come here to escape something.” My (few) friends who’ve lived in Alaska have affirmed the sentiment, usually just before focusing all their efforts into getting out again.
Reality Check, @12 intolerant and xenophobic may be the way some Alaskans like Alaska, but not all, given there are actual civilized cities now. Last I checked amongst the precepts of individualism, they way you do things on your plot of land is not my business, and the law of the commons is mutual respect. Of course, this isn’t exactly what frontiersfolk practice (i.e. treating non-conformists like open sport). Just to put into perspective what rugged, independent and rural is, i.e. a wilderness of savage barbarians.
Man from W.A.S.I.L.L.A., @21 my understanding is the Government subsidy isn’t worth the stay. Cut it off and Alaska would empty out like North Dakota. Doesn’t change your point that AK is quite the opposite of independent, but there are some justifications for it.
FarNorth, are you a secessionist? I thought Todd Palin was one until it interfered with Sarah’s political career. He may be again.
Regarding the photo, as one in the thick of the discussion, I thought the image’s focus on the I was born black, you chose 2B gay poster seems to suggest a low opinion of the intelligence level of the red-shirt army since a) the chose to be gay argument is commonly known to be fallacious on multiple levels, and that b) I was born black… implies the whole don’t steal my victimhood personal justification by the bearer to be exclusionary about gays.
Do I have that right? Maybe the gay choice argument is still commonplace amongst the lay observers.
If I posted my business name/rental properties name and gay people would just stay away that would be fine,, I’d do it. But you see,, it’s not that easy. The militants that want to take my rights away will do things like burn my business, harass my employees and do the typical hateful things people on the left do. So,, sorry,, not going to make it that easy for ya.. Just stick with the boycott of Alaska. Or continue to live your lifestyle but don’t force me to accept it. I tolerate it and that’s the best you’ll get from me.
@69 You are gold. Seriously. You hide behind the fear of a violent militant gay army, a coward unwilling to publicly stand up for your point of view. Unlike the brave assembly members who have been subject to some really ugly threats and comments on The Anchorage Daily News website from the right and the religious. You sir, are not a real Alaskan. Go ahead and keep your right to be a bigot and hide in dark. I love my state, but I find myself ashamed and embarrassed every time Alaska makes the news thanks to people like you.
FarNorth @69 The gays in Alaska are militant enough to burn your business to the ground? Are you sure we’re talking about the same guys as the blue-shirts having raves at their demonstrations? If so, please, please send them to Utah. There’s a really big fortress over there teeming with anti-gay sentiments, and can use a heavy dose of arson…
@69 there’s a company up here called Far North Yarn Co. Any relation?
Memo to all bigots everywhere: we’re going to win. It might not happen today, but it’s going to happen. You’re on the wrong side of history people. So go ahead. Keep making your inane placards. Keep putting your bullshit props on the ballot. Keep trying to hold back the tide of justice for just a little bit longer if it makes you feel good. But it’s ultimately futile, and deep down you know that as well as I do.
My only comment: Fuck Alaska and the polar bear it rode in on.
@69
Wow!! Taking away your rights, burning your business, harassing your employees? Really? Honestly!? Are you sure you’re not engaging in a little hyperbole? Because if you’re being honest, you’ve got some bad-ass fags up there. In the larger scheme of things, gays are much more likely to be on the receiving end of that kind of treatment from straights (or closet cases) than vice versa.
And tell me this: how does granting gays equal treatment threaten your rights?
p.s. What’s with all the extra commas?
You can voice your disapproval of Mayor Sullivan’s veto by a) writing him a nice letter explaining how hate is especially unwelcome in public officials and b) making it known at his bar – McGinley’s Pub – that you won’t support a business that funds fascism.
People who make a big deal about homosexuality being a choice are probably spending a lot of time choosing not to be gay.
That said, it doesn’t fucking matter if it’s a choice or not. Really. Whether or not people are choosing to be gay, there is no justification for not allowing people to marry people of the same gender.
People who make a big deal about homosexuality being a choice are probably spending a lot of time choosing not to be gay.
That said, it doesn’t fucking matter if it’s a choice or not. Really. Whether or not people are choosing to be gay, there is no justification for not allowing people to marry people of the same gender.
Yep, high five to Aussie Steve and Rob From Baltimore, this is what cheers me up.
While I appreciate everyone who wants to win arguments with the bigots, what can you say to willful ignorance? The simple facts that the fight isn’t over until humanity wins and that things are getting better is why sometimes the answer to shouting and dishonesty is to have a little dance party.
I’m reminded of Theodore Sturgeon’s story (The Cosmic Rape) about a group mind that tries to enslave earth and when it reaches us is infected by individuality, releasing every mind it has enslaved (as though humans were the antidote for the BORG, you see). Freedom will eat them all alive!
While on the subject: the same author also wrote two great stories touching on equal rights for gay folk : “Affair With A Green Monkey” (1957) and (better and more to the point, a story that everyone should be exposed to) “The World Well Lost” (1953).
Carry on!
62 69 FarNorth, although you and I don’t share the same views when it comes to employment and probably housing related to those who have adopted the gay lifestyle, given the extremes they have gone to in other states, I can see your concerns. A word of unsolicited advice to you and all your fellow Alaskans, keep mobilizing politically and don’t let your guard down. Look at 49 and 60. These ideological groups mean business and they’ll throw everything at us. They’re very open and adamant about it too.
You don’t need to worry about boycotts tho, I can’t tell you how long i’ve been hearing gay lobby groups near me threaten to boycott Jamaica because of its laws concerning sexual conduct, and the economy of the island hasn’t suffered one bit because of it. I’ve had two relatives vacation there last month (envy) and its as thriving and enchanting as ever. So let them boycott till their hearts contents. Even the withdrawal of funds from the obscenely wealthy amongst them wont amount to diddly squat. Keep you’re eyes on your assembly and mayor ’cause they’re the ones who can keep them from really infringing on your rights or leave you and yours at their mercy. It’s up to you to keep your elected officials in check and let them know who they’re really working for. We’re all in this together so don’t give up keep up, the good fight, cause we are in the morally just, winning side of history.
Alaska is a welfare state. They pay people to live there because smart people otherwise wouldn’t and stupid people would freeze to death.
Once its oil runs out, they’ll be abandoned to their own devices. Shortly thereafter they’ll cease being a problem, because it will just be caribou, bellies fat from the carcasses of those rugged individual citizens.
@ 69, you just revealed what’s really in your heart with this one. Fear. And fear leads to anger, as Yoda told us.
Sorry. Keeping people who are born the way the are out of your business and off your property is not a right you’ll find codified anywhere, so the “do your rights trump my rights” argument doesn’t apply.
@10: Beautiful quote. That one’s going on my wall.
Oops: forgot to mention two more things about Theodore Sturgeon:
1) He was straight.
2) He had a heart bigger than his head in his chest.
@10 & @83:
Desmond Tutu is a generous-hearted, openminded, and selfless person, who happens to be a Christian. FartsNorth & LovesChild = small-minded, mean people who happen to be c#nts. Oh, and claim to be Christian (but without being Christ-like, so much: I doubt that when Christ was sitting with the prostitutes and tax collectors that he was going on at them in the “loving” way that LC and similar proselytizers specialize in).
@4 abandoning the red states is exactly the opposite of what we should be doing! we need more fair minded folks moving to these “red” areas to shift that voting majority to a more moderate, or dare i say, left of center viewpoint.
@10 thanks for posting those inspiring words from a true religious leader
@24 i like the way you think
@50 well said vince
@64/66 i couldn’t agree more, it’s a shame that equal treatment must be legislated, but there has always been those in society that believe they, and the group they belong to, are better than another
@69 i have no desire to burn your business down, i just want the right to be employed there and not worry about being fired if my boyfriend happened to drop by to bring me lunch.
@78 while i agree with your comment 100%, this ordinance wasn’t about an issue as volatile as gay marriage. it was something much simpler… fair/equal protection from employment and rental discrimination within the community.
80. Except you are losing. More and more people think that gay people deserve rights. Just as the segregationists failed in the south, you and your hateful kind will fail. Gay people are here to stay, and we will get full civil rights. (Did you graduate from high school or not?…Although your refusal to answer all this time answers the question.)
lol,, I love it.. You people are so predictable. I’m bored of most you now so I’ll leave you to your little pity party. God is a patient God, he’s waiting for you.
Good Day!
Wow – Farnorth and LOveschild: if I ever need a homophobic, irrational character in a novel, you won’t mind if I use your posts verbatim, do you?
But, FarRight…er, FarNorth, you forget one thing: Washington doesn’t get subsidized to any similar degree that Alaska does, and Washington has significantly more military presence in terms of headcount than Alaska.
Alaska is a welfare state, plain and simple. Half the reason i got the holy living hell out was that the “do very little to nothing and expect the state to solve your problems” mindset was so pervasive that it led to the cycle of social problems and failure that permeate modern Alaskan society.
Alaska used to mean something. It used to be about hard work, independence, and a sense of community that gave people space but didn’t leave your neighbors behind. Unfortunately, much like Texas used to mean something, too…it’s become a backwards, intolerant nightmare populated by people who think they’re pioneers and are really just pathetic fucking whiners.
@86 That’s all well and good, but the bigotry was only one of the reasons I never went back… the others being the 9 months of winter, perpetual darkness, cabin fever, and extremely high rates of alcoholism and STIs.
On the plus side, the scenery is absolutely amazing in the summer- but I can always get that when I go to visit family.
http://images.encyclopediadramatica.com/…
It was a sad comedy watching the other side recruit children to hold signs… that said gays recruit children, and then being unable to see the irony. My sign “Pedophiles come from churches, not gay bars!”, was called “slanderous” by one woman in red (which was soo not sexy in this context), who refused to provide a definition of slander when I asked if she knew what it meant. Instead, her defense was “Well, that’s just the *Catholics* anyway, not real Christian churches.” I was stymied.
Anyway, there are three online opinion polls regarding Sully’s veto. We’re ahead, which calls into question the Mayor’s “4 to 1” opposition numbers. They’re at
http://www.ktva.com
http://www.aksuperstation.com
http://www.kfat929.com
@15 – We keep trying to TELL people like you we were BORN gay. We know our inner selves better than you know us. Yet, you continue to put your fingers in your ears, and in a sing-song manner go, “la-la-la-la-la, I can’t hear you.”
Therefore, it becomes YOUR problem, not ours.
47 – No. Bigoted asshats are responsible for their own vile opinions and behavior. Without religion, people like them would find a different excuse, just as people like Kim would follow a secular philosophy to the same reasonable, kind, and compassionate ends.
I have no love of fundamentalist religion, but people are responsible for their own hate. Bigotry is entitlement for the small-minded and insecure, and just because they wrap up their justification in a spiritual system doesn’t mean it doesn’t come from anywhere other than straight from their own black little hearts.
Well, lucky me. I just happen to have a pre-paid trip to Alaska starting in THREE DAYS. I’m not canceling it, but I’ll try not to spend much cash in Anchorage.
Far North @69, believe me, if you want to find a way to keep away gay employees and forbid gay people from renting your properties, you’ll be able to do it (legal or otherwise). Just as people find ways to discriminate against catholics, mormons, protestants, jews, etc. today. It’s illegal, but with enough effort you can usually find a way.
The point is that there should be a law on the books saying that it’s wrong to fire an employee for something that has nothing to do with how well they do their job. And there should be a law on the books saying that it’s wrong to evict a responsible tenant who pays their rent and doesn’t abuse your property and lives by the terms of their lease. The law may be unenforceable, but as a civilized state these laws should exist as an example of how the best type of citizen should behave.
Don’t worry, you’ll still get to treat people like they aren’t good enough to be near you. You’ll just have to be maybe a tiny bit more creative, but it won’t take much effort.
There is another protest today (aug. 21st at 6:30pm) in downtown Anchorage. Any one who is able should come by and visit. Its going to be part across from town hall, and the other section is going to be protesting McGinley’s Pub, which is right up the street. Those who are going to McGinley’s are asked to dress in leather or drag if able, and to bring their partner or a friend for a kiss in.
McGinley’s is partly owned by Dan Sullivan. It should be fun. See you there!