Monday night, the Fort Dodge City Council voted in favor of adding sexual orientation to an anti-discrimination law. Everyone voted yes except for Cindy Litwiller, who voted no.
When this last came up last year, it created a firestorm of controversy. A couple of local religious groups opposed it because of their religious beliefs. One proponent said we needed the law because they would make the city look better (would this be a job Fort Dodge citizens are unwilling to do?). The council didn't make any friends by just tabling the issue and doing nothing.
Even with the controversy I can't say I'm too surprised that the law was passed with as many votes as it did. As The Messenger article noted, a similar law was passed by the Iowa legislature this year, so it pretty much made it inevitable. But what really got me was a quote by Council Member Dan Payne, who said that even though most everyone he talked to opposed the measure, and even though he personally opposed the measure, he voted "yes" anyways.
My only question is--How do you reconcile the two? Its one thing to vote the way your constituents want you to. It's one thing to take a stand and vote your belief and convictions. But to go against both of those?
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