Anti-Discrimination Ordinance
Ordinance 2029
4-12-12
At the packed meeting which went 'til late at night, the Public Hearing
played out with testimony going pro then con, pron then con so those on each
side of the issue were able to hear the concerns of the other side.
End result: the
Proposed Ordinance
2029 passed - ( possibly with changes - but we'll get back
to you with details. )
3-9-12 Decision to
advertise for Public Hearing.
This ordinance was presented, after lengthy discussion with
opinions both pro & con. Many of the opinions against
advertising the ordinance had to do with the fact that it had
poor wording and a lot of ambiguity on may issues. Commissioner
Schreiber explained that one of the difficulties was that it had
to be written keeping the State regulations in mind. No
ordinance can supersede or change the intent the the
intentions of the State regulations
Please contact your Commissioners and ask them to produce a
single page on this issue that has links or info about:
the historical actions,
the current status,
the next meeting,
the actual document - what version is currently being
discussed
an email list where residents can receive notice of updates on the issue,
meeting changes or cancellations
or news of new postings
Here is the only posted version we could find
http://abington.patch.com/articles/abington-to-advertise-anti-discrimination-hearing#pdf-9289343
2-1-11
On
January 13 2011 the Township turned down an opportunity to pass an
ordinance that prohibited discrimination in access
to employment, housing and commercial property, public
education, and public accommodations'. Sexual orientation and
gender identity or expression were to be specifically added in
a local ordinance because of the omission of this verbiage in
state law. The ordinance also would provide for the
establishment of a municipal human relations commission to
handle complaints based on this ordinance.
Some suggested that our "No Place for Hate" committee already
handles these issues, and some suggested that there was not
correct language to deal with exemptions by religious
organizations or others who have special exceptions by state or
federal law.
There was much testimony in favor of the
ordinance and some testimony against it. And there was, as
nearly always in Abington meetings, interference with residents'
normal rights to speak and normal rights to call for questions
of the process. Inexcusable. But despite a lawsuit pending for
this kind of behavior, Board President DiJoseph continues in
this manner, which appears to be in complete violation of the
rules that govern these meetings.
Apparently there is another twist in this
adventure. Commissioner DiJoseph, Chief Kelly and
representatives from No Place for Hate committee - all of whom
opposed the ordinance - rewrote it without the knowledge or
input of other board members who would have wanted to be
included . One Commissioner says he is " very concerned about
the manner in which it was produced". That same Commissioner
has been unsupportive when the same type of activity occurred to
others - and especially when residents complain of this kind of
behavior. . It is indeed reflective of what we have been
trying to change .
__________________________
Please feel free to
contact us
with your own
information on these topics and please be sure
to
contact us
about any information you believe to be
incorrect -
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