The Summit County Council expects to begin discussing whether to write into law prohibitions against discrimination based on sexual orientation. And the conservative Sutherland Institute was quick to respond.
Summit County Councilman Chris Robinson received a letter from the Utah-based think tank encouraging local officials not to enact laws that prevent people from being fired or evicted from their homes because they are gay.
“Homosexual activists and their supporters are making a concerted effort to request that every city council and county commission or council in Utah adopt nondiscrimination ordinances related to ‘sexual orientation’ and ‘gender identity’ in housing and employment policies that mirror what has occurred in Salt Lake City,” Sutherland Institute President Paul T. Mero wrote in the March 1 letter. “Our greatest concern is how these newly-created special rights conflict with established constitutional rights of religious liberty, freedom of conscience, and freedom of association.”
The Salt Lake City Council has supported an ordinance banning discrimination against gays in housing and employment matters, which raises legal concerns about property rights and “at-will employment,” according to Mero.
“While the state Legislature understands these concerns very well, and will address them when the timing is appropriate, you and your colleagues will no doubt be pressed by homosexual activists and their supporters to move swiftly to adopt these measures,” Mero stated.
But Coalville resident Tyler Rowser, who is gay, said nobody should lose their job or their home because of their sexual orientation.
“How many protected classes are their in the United States? We protect African-Americans from prejudice, and you can’t discriminate against somebody based on their religion,” Rowser said in a telephone interview Tuesday. “The precedents have been set that you can’t be discriminated against because of that.”
The government should provide gay people with similar protections, he added.
A North Summit native, Rowser said he lives with his partner in Coalville. He said he was not a target for discrimination while growing up in the county.
“I’m sure some people are,” Rowser said. “[An antidiscrimination ordinance] is a great tool to protect people from discrimination on either side of the aisle.”
Meanwhile, members of the Park City Council are poised to enact an antidiscrimination ordinance similar to the policy discussed in Salt Lake City.
If approved, a law may prevent business owners from considering sexual orientation when making hiring decisions, Park City Attorney Mark Harrington said.
The Sutherland Institute has also encouraged leaders in Park City to reject an ordinance, Harrington said.
“Council received something in opposition to moving forward, which they said they weren’t really going to give much thought to,” he added.
Harrington said he has no legal qualms over the City Council considering the measure. He said he expects the discussion to continue in April.