Arlington adds sexual orientation, gender identity to non-discrimination ordinances
When DeeJay Johannessen moved to Arlington in 1998 with his then-partner, he was denied a lease and was told renting to two tenants of the same gender went against the unit’s policy.
Conditions have improved for members of the LGBT community since he was turned down, Johannessen said.
“But they’re not perfect,” he told the city council Tuesday evening.
Johannessen relayed his experiences in Arlington moments before councilmembers approved a new ordinance and modified ordinances that prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
When Johannessen was working to open the HELP Center, a group that provides HIV testing, preventative medication and community programming, at 200 E. Division St., city council and employees questioned his and the property owner’s decision.
Since then, the center has provided services to around 2,000 patients and distributed around $18 million in medication.
Johannessen also accepted a proclamation from the city declaring June pride month.
Six residents supported the proposed ordinances, including Johannessen and the Rev. Kevin Johnson of St. Alban’s Episcopal Church, who said he occasionally considers the possibility of a landlord refusing to renew his lease because he is gay.
“Discrimination is not just an abstract concept,” he said. “It affects real people’s lives.”
Council has spent multiple afternoon sessions discussing ways to improve its score in the Human Rights Campaign’s Municipal Equality Index. The annual report grades the 200 largest United States cities and 50 capitals on LGBT-friendly local policies, laws and services.
Arlington received a score of 63 last year and has risen steadily since 2013, when it received an 11. Both Dallas and Fort Worth received scores of 100 in 2020.
The city currently reports hate crime statistics annually to the Federal Bureau of Investigations, adopted non-discrimination policies for city employees and contractors, instituted groups and liaisons for LGBTQ employees and has supported grant and in-kind assistance to support LGBTQ programs for the community.
Previous city council presentations have also listed creating a Human Rights Commission or policies to discourage bullying based on sexual orientation and gender identity in youth city programs as methods to raise the score.
This story was originally published June 8, 2021 at 10:33 PM with the headline "Arlington adds sexual orientation, gender identity to non-discrimination ordinances."
CORRECTION: This story was updated to provide more details about the anti-discrimination ordinance and Arlington’s amended Fair Housing Code.
