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Heated Discussion on Miami-Dade Human Rights Ordinance Airs Live
on June 19 on WLRN Community Channel 36
MIAMI - The contentious and bitter fight to repeal the sexual orientation amendment of the Miami-Dade County Human Rights Ordinance will be the focus of heated discussion June 19 on Freedom's Watchdog ? the ACLU's weekly cable access show that gives viewers the opportunity to call-in and speak their minds.
The hour-long call-in show will feature guest Heddy Pe?a, Board Co-Chair of No To Discrimination/SAVE Dade, the non-profit group that is leading the campaign to fight discrimination and retain the county's prohibition on discrimination based on sexual orientation. In 1998, Miami-Dade Commissioners voted to amend the Code of Metropolitan Dade County and protect gays and lesbians from discrimination in the areas of employment, housing, credit and finance practices and public accommodations. The law amending the Dade code adds sexual orientation to the list of protected categories, along with race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, gender, pregnancy, age, disability, marital status, familial status.
Pe?a will be joined on the show by Take Back Miami-Dade's Eladio Jos? Armesto, the outspoken Communications Director who helped mount a petition drive calling for a referendum to repeal the sexual orientation amendment. Dr. Bruce J. Winick, Professor of Law at the University of Miami School of Law, will round out the panel. He helped draft one of the nation's first gay right laws ? the 1977 equal rights ordinance passed by the Dade County Commission that also barred discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. Dade voters repealed the ordinance less than a year after it was adopted.
The fate of the sexual orientation amendment of the Human Rights Ordinance once again lies in the hands of Miami-Dade voters, who will go to the polls on September 10 to decide whether or not gays and lesbians should be protected against discrimination.
On May 8, community leaders rallied in support of the sexual orientation amendment by announcing the creation of a "No To Discrimination" Committee led by Miami-Dade County Mayor Alex Penelas and co-chairs Marleine Bastien, of Haitian Women of Miami, Inc., Cristina Saralegui, Spanish-language TV personality, Norman Braman, Chairman of Braman Motors and local civil rights attorney H.T. Smith.
The live television show, produced by the ACLU of Florida, will air from 3 to 4 p.m. June 19 on WLRN's Community Channel 36. The studio is located at the Cable-TAP studios, 172 NE 15 th St. During the show, viewers can call (305) 995-2111 to comment on the issue, debate with the guests or ask questions.
The live television show airs live at 3 p.m. every Wednesdays and repeats at 7 p.m. on Thursdays and 6 p.m. on Sundays on Cable-TAP's Community Channel. The Community Channel is seen on Channel 36 except for 24 on Miami TCI, 15 on Media One, 55 on Strategic Technology, and 31 on TCI North/South. The ACLU's educational series is airing under the auspices of the Miami-Dade County Cable Television Access Project (Cable-TAP), a joint venture of Miami-Dade County Public Schools, Miami-Dade County government, and WLRN. Together they operate the largest cable system in the country, interconnecting to almost 500,000 homes in Miami-Dade County.
Contact:
Alessandra Soler Meetze, ACLU-FL Communications Director, (305) 576-2337
ext. 16 (office) or 786-208-7203 (cell)
