Brandon West, a Lorain resident and longtime advocate, asked City Council to consider two draft ordinances he submitted: one to create a new "part 18" civil rights and human dignity code that would add nondiscrimination protections for LGBTQIA+ people, and a second to establish a human rights commission to investigate discrimination complaints.
Council voted to read West's email correspondence aloud during the meeting; the motion to read the letter carried with one dissenting vote (Councilman Thornsberry voted no).
In public comment, Brandon West said his proposals "do not ban beliefs or police conversation" and that they are intended to be "community driven and built with common sense." He urged council members to meet with him to discuss the drafts attached to his email.
Council responses were mixed. Councilman Wall said he would encourage West to contact the local fair housing program and said Lorain has "explicit language that you cannot discriminate against someone in housing because of their ****** preferences," a comment he made in the meeting. Councilman Whitehall praised West for advocacy, saying, "I just like to commend mister West on continually being a voice." No ordinance was introduced by the council during the meeting.
West's letter referenced the U.S. Supreme Court decision Bostock v. Clayton County with respect to employment protections, and he noted that federal protections do not, in his view, cover housing, public accommodations or healthcare. He attached the two draft ordinances to his email and asked for opportunities to collaborate with council and residents on wording and implementation.
Council action at the meeting was limited to accepting and reading the correspondence into the record; further legislative steps were not taken during the session.