Annise Parker made history by becoming Houston's first LGBT mayor and the first openly lesbian mayor of a major U.S. city. And she's not done making history, either.
To paraphrase that 1980s cult classic, They Live!, Annise Parker came to the mayor's office to chew bubblegum and kick ass ... and she's all out of bubblegum. So what's she doing? She's enacting an anti-discrimination policy, through executive order, that might just be the most comprehensive in the nation.
According to the Dallas Voice, Parker's executive order replaces a previous missive (issued by then Houston Mayor and current Texas U.S. Senate gubernatorial candidate Bill White) that only covered discrimination based on sexual orientation. Under Parker's order, sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression are now included in Houston anti-discrimination policy.
“The purpose of this Executive Order is to prohibit discrimination and/or retaliation on the basis of sexual orientation and/or gender identity at every level of municipal government, including hiring, contracting and/or access to City facilities and programs/activities,” the order states. It then goes on to clarify that in addition to gender identity, gender expression is also included.
Yay for sweeping executive orders that prohibit discrimination. And yay for LGBT politicians, like Parker, who continue to demonstrate that LGBT people can reach some of the higher echelons of government, and do so while changing hearts and minds on those issues so closely tied to the struggle for equality. Might this anti-discrimination ordinance now become a model for other cities to follow?
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