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SALT LAKE CITY -
In an unexpected vote Tuesday night, the Salt Lake City Council has unanimously passed the state's first anti-gay discrimination ordinances. This comes after the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints gave its strong support in favor of the acts. The LDS church supports the pair of Salt Lake City ordinances that makes it illegal to discriminate against gays in housing and employment matters, a spokesman said Tuesday.
Michael Otterson, the director of public affairs for the LDS church, endorsed the proposals during a City Council meeting.
"The church supports these ordinances because they are fair and reasonable and do not do violence to the institution of marriage," Otterson said.
Salt Lake is the first city in Utah to ban discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. The proposals make it illegal to fire or evict someone for being lesbian, bisexual, gay or transgender.
The endorsement is not a shift in the church's position on gay rights and reinforces past statements on the issue, Otterson said.
In August 2008, the church issued a statement saying it supports gay rights related to hospitalization, medical care, housing or probate as long as they "do not infringe on the integrity of the traditional family or the constitutional rights of churches."
But Otterson said Tuesday the church "remains unequivocally committed to defending the bedrock foundation of marriage between a man and a woman."
The church said its support for the ordinances is due in part to the way they are drafted to carve out exceptions that protect the religious freedoms of all churches.
Previous Utah legislation that sought protections for the gay community did not contain those exceptions.
The church has come under fire for its support of Proposition 8, a ballot measure that banned gay marriage in California in 2008.
FOX 13's Sandy Riesgraf reports.
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Michael Otterson, the director of public affairs for the LDS church, endorsed the proposals during a City Council meeting.
"The church supports these ordinances because they are fair and reasonable and do not do violence to the institution of marriage," Otterson said.
Salt Lake is the first city in Utah to ban discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. The proposals make it illegal to fire or evict someone for being lesbian, bisexual, gay or transgender.
The endorsement is not a shift in the church's position on gay rights and reinforces past statements on the issue, Otterson said.
In August 2008, the church issued a statement saying it supports gay rights related to hospitalization, medical care, housing or probate as long as they "do not infringe on the integrity of the traditional family or the constitutional rights of churches."
But Otterson said Tuesday the church "remains unequivocally committed to defending the bedrock foundation of marriage between a man and a woman."
The church said its support for the ordinances is due in part to the way they are drafted to carve out exceptions that protect the religious freedoms of all churches.
Previous Utah legislation that sought protections for the gay community did not contain those exceptions.
The church has come under fire for its support of Proposition 8, a ballot measure that banned gay marriage in California in 2008.
FOX 13's Sandy Riesgraf reports.
SEND US YOUR NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS PICTURES! www.fox13now.com/pics
FOLLOW US ON TWITTER! @fox13now
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