The Omaha City Council heard testimony yesterday from dozens of people, on an LGBT anti-discrimination ordinance being considered there. Among those testifying were Oscar-winning screenwriter Alexander Payne, a native Omahan, and University of Nebraska Assistant Football Coach Ron Brown.
Watch Brown's testimony and a news report, AFTER THE JUMP…
I've written about the ordinance in recent weeks, and the battle between Omaha City Councilmember Ben Gray, who sponsored the Equal Employment Ordinance, and Beau McCoy (below), a state senator who introduced a bill intended to stop Gray's ordinance at the state level. Watch Gray talk about the bill here.
About 100 people testified on Councilman Ben Gray's proposed amendments to city discrimination laws. The amendments would allow lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender residents to file complaints with Omaha's Human Rights and Relations Department if they were fired over their orientation, suffered other workplace discrimination or were refused service at restaurants, hotels or other places that serve the public.
Councilman Franklin Thompson, who killed a similar proposal in 2010 by refusing to vote, said before the meeting that “whoever wins the debate on Tuesday will get my vote.”
Thompson is apparently the deciding vote. The mayor is ready to sign the bill.
Brown told the Council what they were doing is “not Biblical”. Said Brown: “The question I have for you, like Pontius Pilate, is: ‘What are you going to do with Jesus?' For those of you on this council who have a relationship with Christ, and only you know if you do, you will be held to great accountability for the decision you make.”
Blogger Aksarbent, who shot video of Brown's “sermonette” to council members, adds: “Brown has made a career of foisting his reactionary brand of Christianity on football players and of ignoring separation of church and state in his attempts to proselytize in public schools under the guise of campaigning against alcohol abuse, drunk driving and other problems which are quite solvable without religion.”
Watch Brown's testimony and a news report, AFTER THE JUMP…
More from KETV here.
And her's a KPTM report (may take a few seconds to load:
