Source: Kalamazoo Gazette, WKZO
KALAMAZOO -- When Max Tibbitts and his partner moved to Kalamazoo in the late 1980s, they were turned away from renting an apartment, he told Kalamazoo Gazette.

Tibbitts said the complex had a policy against renting one-bedroom dwellings to two men. To him, it was clearly discrimination against a gay couple, but he and his partner had no legal basis to fight for what they feel is a basic human right.

A law passed last month by Kalamazoo's city commission would have given others in that position a legal option in the future. The commission voted unanimously to adopt an ordinance banning discrimination against LGBT people, but the law is now on hold.

More than a thousand city residents, including former commissioner and current Kalamazoo County Treasurer Mary Balkema, signed a petition forcing commissioners to either rescind the ordinance or put it to a vote of the people. Until then, the ordinance is suspended.

A straw-poll suggests the commission will not back down and rescind the measure, WKZO radio reports.

"What we're talking about is not trying to violate anyone's principles, it's about discrimination. My position is anytime there's discrimination against anybody, we should try and stop it," Commissioner Don Cooney told WKZO.

Tibbitts and more than three dozen other people met Tuesday in Kalamazoo to begin plan out the fight to retain the ordinance.

"I have a personal interest in equality," Tibbitts told the Gazette, adding that he and his partner have experienced discrimination repeatedly over the years. "This ordinance isn't just about being gay, it's about being human and being discriminated against."

A citywide vote probably would be scheduled for May 5, according to City Attorney Clyde Robinson.

The City Commission will debate the next step at a meeting Monday, but organizers of the effort to retain the ordinance say they can't wait.

"We need to reach out to every progressive organization in the city to build our alliance," said Terry Kuseske, chairman of the Kalamazoo Alliance for Equality's political action committee. "This is the beginning of an effort to make sure Kalamazoo is an open, affirming and diverse community that is welcoming to everybody," he said.

The petition drive to suspend the ordinance was spearheaded by the American Family Association of Michigan. 1,864 signatures were submitted Dec. 31. City Clerk Scott Borling certified Monday that at least 1,452 of those signatures were from registered, city residents -- enough to suspend the ordinance, Kalamazoo Gazette reports.

Source: Backers of gay-rights ordinance mobilize | Kalamazoo Gazette 
Debate on Ordinance Expected | WKZO
Voters may get final say in gay- rights ordinance | Kalamazoo Gazette

state_mi