Starkville’s statement of equality and its plus-one insurance offering — two watershed policies in the landscape of the civil rights movement for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered employees and their partners — will remain off the books after aldermen overrode Mayor Parker Wiseman’s vetoes 5-2 Tuesday.
The board canceled his attempts to save the LGBT-friendly policies after public speakers, which were mostly in favor of the city’s historic non-discrimination statement and new insurance tier, drummed aldermen for rescinding the policies behind closed doors and without public discussions two weeks ago.
The key players in the Jan. 6 action — Vice Mayor Roy A. Perkins and Ward 2 Alderman Lisa Wynn — remained silent at the table Tuesday, offering only motions to override the vetoes.
It was Perkins who, unofficial minutes show, initiated the board’s previous policy changes, while Wynn, who previously allowed the policies to stand, seconded each attempt and voted in favor of their cancelation.
Starkville became the first Mississippi city to specifically include the LGBT community in its non-discrimination language last January. Earlier this month, it became the first to walk back such protections despite eight other state towns following Starkville’s example and issuing their own inclusion policies last year.
In September, aldermen extended medical insurance coverage to an adult dependent of employees’ choosing, which could have included same-sex partners. The insurance offering created no additional cost to the city as employees would pay monthly out-of-pocket fees.
The board nixed the equality resolution and amended the insurance offering to those in state-recognized marriages — heterosexual couples — during the first meeting of the year.
Only Ward 4 Alderman Jason Walker and Ward 5 Alderman Scott Maynard voted to support Wiseman’s vetoes. Both aldermen have remained supportive of the two policies since their inception.
“(Repealing the equality statement) means you are affirmatively stating that you no longer believe discrimination of this kind is wrong. I know each and every one of you, and I don’t think that’s who you are. I know that’s not who we are as a community,” Wiseman said while stumping for his vetoes. “No matter what happens tonight, the heartbeat of this community will go on. I do believe that we will continue to grow.”
Rob Hill, the state director for the Human Rights Campaign, vowed to continue working toward equality in Starkville after the vote. The HRC, a national supporter of LGBT rights, previously applauded and condemned the city for its progressive policies and their subsequent cancelation.
“Though upsetting and disappointing, the board’s vote tells us that we must do more community engagement to show the leaders of Starkville that equality is important to move the city forward,” Hill said in a release. “Fairness and inclusion are critical to attracting new business to Starkville, diverse students to Mississippi State (University) and quality workers to join the city’s workforce. LGBT people are our friends, neighbors, coworkers and family members, and we must ensure all people are welcomed within their communities.”
Walker: Closed-door reasoning was a ‘stretch, fabrication’
Before Tuesday’s vote, Walker and Maynard spoke out against their peers’ actions and how the override would place Starkville on the wrong side of history.
Maynard began his defense by alluding to former segregationist governors — Mississippi’s own Ross Barnett and Alabama’s George Wallace — and reminding aldermen the United States Supreme Court will soon decide many LGBT issues this year like it did with integration during the civil rights movement.
“I find it ironic that the day after Martin Luther King Jr. Day, we’re debating this. I suggested to this group that we wait until September when we’re negotiating next year’s insurance policy to even discuss this at all, because then we’d have all the facts in front of us,” he said. “Where does that leave us (in terms of the city’s legacy)? The interesting thing is (during the civil rights movement) people were arguing (in favor of segregation) with the Bible as well. The sad thing is the people making that argument thought they were right and were right with God, much like the arguments tonight.
“Our only decision is where we will land in a historical perspective,” Maynard added before Wynn motioned for the vote.
Walker took aim at how the board avoided public debate on the issue earlier this month by claiming potential litigation as a need to meet behind closed doors.
“I believe (the potential litigation excuse) is a fabrication. I asked who (the potential litigant was) and there was no answer to that question because they couldn’t give an answer,” he said. “If you want to have this discussion, it should be right here before (the public). You don’t hide in executive session over something that is a stretch at best.”
Walker, like many aldermen, ran on transparency as an election platform. In their campaigns, many candidates took aim at the prior administration and their perceived lack of transparency — the Miss. Ethics Commission did find the previous board violated the Open Meetings Act and simply warned them to not repeat their actions.
“You’re not always going to like the decisions I make, but you’re going to know where I stand,” he said. “Unfortunately, we’re (having discussions on the policy changes) after the fact. That’s not how city government should work. It should be in front of the people, by the people and for the people.”
Carver: Parody Twitter account is discriminatory
The only board members who defended their votes against the two policies — Ward 1’s Ben Carver and Ward 3’s David Little — did so Tuesday by saying they approached the measures the way their constituents wanted.
Both aldermen originally approved the two policies last year — the equality language passed unanimously on consent, while all seven aldermen approved the plus-one insurance tier in September — but later claimed, at least for the insurance coverage, that Wiseman and Chief Administrative Officer Taylor Adams withheld information about the totality of the policy’s impact.
Both also confirmed they were unaware that Perkins would bring up repealing and amending the two policies in executive session before it happened. They remained consistent with their votes, they said, since it was again brought up for action.
“I’m responsible for my own actions, and all the decisions I make are based on my moral compass. From the start, I never thought this was an LGBT issue. I think it was made into that,” Carver said. “I am only one vote in one small town, and it may be at a time when the nation is changing — it may not be — but at the end of the day … I have my vote and can use it the way I see fit.”
Carver also alluded to a parody Twitter account — @BenCarverPrays — that began targeting him since early on in the term. The Ward 1 alderman said he understands discrimination since the account and its messages are discriminatory to him.
“Does anybody here have a fake Twitter account about them praying? I’ve been discriminated against. I’m living it right now,” he said.
Carver’s comments drew reactions from #WeAreStarkville supporters, a local movement that linked like-minded residents who champion LGBT rights, including murmurs of “freedom of speech” from that side of the room.
Since the start of this term, four aldermen — Carver, Little, Perkins and Ward 7’s Henry Vaughn — have been lampooned on the social media platform. A fifth parody account emerged to mock Wynn after the board’s Jan. 6 action, and another parodying the entire board began tweeting during last night’s meeting.
All five of those aldermen voted to repeal Wiseman’s vetoes.
“At the end of the day, Jesus Christ became the center of this whole conversation. Do y’all remember the (What Would Jesus Do?) bracelets? What would he do? Would he contradict his own teachings on this vote? I don’t think so,” Carver said. “You can’t go and change God’s word. I was raised in a Christian household that believed marriage was between a man and a woman. Who in here has a mother and a father? Who in here doesn’t? We talk a lot about sustainability — that’s the buzzword of the decade. You have to have a mother and a father (to sustain life).”
While Little said he voted the way his ward’s residents wanted, he also said the board of aldermen was not elected to tackle social issues.
“I don’t believe that we, as aldermen, were elected to help any grassroots effort secure any rights or privileges that may or may not be provided by the federal government. A lot of businessmen — people you go to church with and see in the gym — don’t want to come out and come forward (against the issues) because it may impact their businesses. They are the silent majority,” he said. “We were sent here to address potholes, poor drainage situations in many neighborhoods … trash pick-up and economic development, not the social issues. These issues have drained too much time from the board. We can’t legislate morals, values, reasoning or understanding.”
Carl Smith covers Starkville and Oktibbeha County for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter @StarkDispatch
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