Mormons Voice Support for Salt Lake City Anti-discrimination Law
November 13, 2009
As a prelude to Salt Lake City becoming the first city in Utah to enact an LGBT-inclusive employment and housing non-discrimination ordinance, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) made the stunning announcement that it supported the measure.
LDS top leaders negotiated behind the scenes with LGBT organizations in Salt Lake City, before making the pronouncement. In the mean time, pro-gay Mormons provided the back drop of repeated public protests over church meddling in legislation and harmful anti-gay teachings.
Straight allies from the Foundation for Reconciliation accessed GLAAD media assistance and garnered media coverage of their meeting with the governor of Utah and their symbolic five mile trek with a pioneer handcart carrying more than 2,000 petition signatures, letters from religious leaders, and memorials for gay LDS suicide victims.
Affirmation Mormons also used GLAAD’s media assistance to garner local Fox News coverage of the high rate of homelessness among Mormon gay youth and launched “Keep them and Love Them,” a web site to help Mormon families with LGBT members.
This week, in response to the LDS support of housing and employment protection, Affirmation’s Executive Director David Melson said,
“Discrimination based on a person’s identity, including race, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability, has always been wrong. It is commendable that the LDS Church is taking a step toward living up to its own teachings of valuing of all humanity. It is a vital first step…we await the second.”
Tuesday night, Michael Otterson, LDS director of public affairs, told the Salt Lake City Council “In essence, the Church agrees with the approach which Mayor Becker is taking on this matter. In drafting these ordinances, the city has granted common sense rights that should be available to everyone, while safeguarding the crucial rights of religious organizations, for example, in their hiring of people whose lives are in harmony with their tenets, or when providing housing for their university students and others that preserve religious requirements.”
According to The New York Times, the ordinance most likely already had the support of the seven-member Salt Lake city council as it passed unanimously. However, the Church statement is viewed by many as a breakthrough. While the Church issued a statement in 2008 saying that it did not condone abuse toward gay people, this is the first time it backed an actual ordinance to protect gay rights. Will Carson, manager of public policy for Equality Utah, told the NY Times,
Related Posts:“It’s the most progressive and inclusive statement that the church has made on these issues.”
Is the Deseret News Planning to Stifle Fair, Accurate and Inclusive Coverage?
February 26, 2009
On February 24, 2009 about a dozen reporters at the Deseret News pulled their bylines in an organized protest over the demotion of two editors at the paper.
Some of the employees that protested at the Deseret News allege that Editor in Chief Joe Cannon has been systematically editing news content to either ignore or sugar-coat stories critical of the Mormon Church. The editors in question were demoted after resisting the changes in news content at the paper. Cannon contends that the changes are necessary for the paper’s financial security.
Though the Deseret News is owned by the Mormon Church, it has historically – until Cannon’s leadership – sought to be perceived as a credible mainstream media publication, dedicated to fair coverage of news stories. Though the paper’s editorial positions have always been closely aligned with those of the Mormon Church, the news coverage has been generally consistent with impartial, non-partisan mainstream journalistic standards.
The reporters who protested this week allege that Cannon has decided to turn Utah’s second largest daily paper in to a “niche” paper – catering specifically to Mormon readers. The reporters say that they believe that under his direction, stories have been edited to present news through the filter of Mormon religious beliefs. In some cases, the protesters suggest stories were completely pulled because they did not strictly adhere to Mormon religious teachings and political views.
The Deseret News presents itself to major business interests as a mainstream newspaper when seeking advertising dollars. Whether advertisers will choose to continue to pay for advertising in a publication that appears to be moving from mainstream news outlet to a religious publication remains to be seen. .
The reporters who pulled their by-lines aren’t happy with the decisions being made by Cannon, which they allege are stifling fair coverage of certain topics. According to Government and Politics Editor Josh Loftin, who led Tuesday’s by-line protest, “In doing so, he [Cannon] has made the decision that saving the newspaper means sacrificing the news value of the newspaper.” Loftin continued, “We were carving out a niche as the best newspaper in the city and that is being undone to be the best Mormon paper in the city.”
In a move that could lead to the stifling of fair, accurate and inclusive coverage of LGBT and other issues, the Deseret News runs the risk of abandoning basic journalistic standards necessary to remain recognizable as a credible media source.
Top Stories Today – 09.18.2008
September 18, 2008
National News:
- Associated Press – Obama Won’t Repeal ‘Don’t Ask’ On His Own
- Associated Press – Brad Pitt Donates Money to Support Gay Marriage
- Newsweek – The New Transgender Reality
- The New York Times – Supreme Court’s Global Influence Is Waning
- Associated Press – Okla.’s Inhofe on Attack Again in Senate Race
- Los Angeles Times – OBITUARY: John Burnside Dies at 91; Gay Rights Activist, Teleidoscope Inventor
Regional News:
- The Press-Enterprise (CA) – Field Poll: Opposition Grows to Initiative that Would Ban Gay Marriage
- Arkansas Democrat Gazette (AR) – Group Shifts Strategy Over Adoption Ban
- The Seattle Times (WA) – Gay Immigrant, Detained in Tacoma, Gains Reprieve
- The Philadelphia Inquirer (PA) – Obama: Go Slower on ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’
- The News-Press–Fort Myers (FL) – Editorial: Florida Wrong on Gay Adoption
- Winston-Salem Journal (NC) – Same-Sex Domestic Violence: Harder to Get Help
- The Salt Lake Tribune (UT) – Ex-Mormon Donates $1M to Kill LDS-Backed Prop. 8
- San Diego Union-Tribune (CA) – Firefighters Testify About Reluctance to Take Part in Gay Pride Parade
- The Capital Times (WI) – Man Arrested After Alleged Gay Slurs, Scuffle
International News:
- Philippine Daily Inquirer (The Philippines) – Call him Jeff, Says SC; he Used to Be Called Jennifer
From the Blogs:
- Towleroad – Obama Clarifies Process for Repeal of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’
- Good As You – Lewis and Clark discuss sex between same
- Box Turtle Bulletin – One-Third of “Yes for Prop 102″ Contributions Come from Mesa, Arizona
- Wayne Besen – Alaskans Protest ‘Ex-Gay’ Conference
- Good As You – Gavin knew some students would wanna help out
- Box Turtle Bulletin – Mormons and California’s Prop 8
- 365Gay.com – Ark. gay group abandons legal challenge to adoption measure
- Mombian – Kentucky Forbids Same-Sex Stepparents
- 365Gay.com – Deadly crash investigation focuses on gay engineer
- The Bilerico Project – Media picks up the slack on Sarah Palin’s LGBT record
- Brad Pitt Donates to Fight California’s Proposition 8:
- Joe.My.God – Brad Pitt Gives $100K To Fight Prop 8
- The Bilerico Project – Brad Pitt donates $100,000 to fight California Prop 8
- Queerty – Brad Pitt is my Hero
- Gay Rights Watch – Brad Pitt Gives $100k to Fight California Marriage Ban
- Box Turtle Bulletin – Brad Pitt Gives to Fight Proposition 8
- Towleroad – Brad Pitt Donates $100,000 to Fight Same-Sex Marriage Ban
- Pam’s House Blend – Brad Pitt donating $100,000 to fight gay marriage ban
- Good As You – Brangelina’s ‘Bra’ backs nups where such are either doubled or nixed
