Council President Ginther to Join GLBT Community, Allies for 2012 Pride Parade

COLUMBUS CITY COUNCIL

MEDIA RELEASE

For Immediate Release: June 14, 2012

John Ivanic

Council President Ginther to Join GLBT Community, Allies for 2012 Pride Parade
City Council recognized as an ally in the fight for equality

(Columbus)--Stonewall Columbus is proud to announce that Columbus City Council President Andrew J. Ginther has been named the group’s Government Ally of the Year and will be leading the 2012 Pride Parade Saturday, June 16^th.  The theme of the 2012 Pride Festival is “Allies and Equality” which will also help celebrate the City’s Bicentennial.

"We are honored to have our council President  lead the parade and march with us this year as an ally and friend of the LGBT community. The efforts that Ginther and our City Council have made to make Columbus an inclusive city have changed the lives of our LGBT citizens in Columbus and we are extremely grateful for their support," stated Karla Rothan, Executive Director of Stonewall Columbus.

In 2008, Ginther helped lead an effort to add sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression to the list of protected classes under the Columbus City Code, making it illegal to discriminate on this basis in Columbus. Subsequently, the same anti-discrimination clause was incorporated into the City’s equal opportunity policy, effectively prohibiting this type of discrimination by any private or public entity which does business with the City.

In 2010, Columbus City Council unanimously supported legislation championed by Ginther which extended City benefits to the domestic partners of City employees. In an effort to ensure access to these same benefits and other basic rights for all Columbus residents, Ginther, along with Councilmember Zach Klein and 2012 Pride Grand Marshall Columbus Mayor Michael B. Coleman, announced a proposal to establish a domestic partner registry in Columbus.

“I am proud to march with the GLBT community and other allies to celebrate the openness and inclusiveness that makes Columbus so special,” said Council President Andrew J. Ginther. “The City’s Bicentennial is a perfect opportunity to reflect on the progress we’ve made toward equal rights, while redoubling our efforts to end discrimination in every form.”

Ginther has also joined the effort to develop a unified front on the issue of marriage equality in Ohio.  He is leading a group of elected leaders to create a transparent and strategic campaign to end marriage discrimination in Ohio.

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