7 - 0 victory in Sterling Heights!

It happened around midnight in the City Council chambers in Sterling Heights, Michigan. The Council voted unanimously, 7 - 0, to pass an ordinance that will prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation or identity. The ordinance will "apply to all persons seeking employment or housing in the city, but specifically would extend civil rights protection based upon sexual orientation and identity."

I am ecstatic.

7 - 0.

I had the honor of speaking with Mayor Pro Tem Mike Taylor before the vote. With allies like him and others on the Council who spoke about equality and prejudice, I feel even more hopeful about the future for those of us who do not fit into the heterosexual norm than I did before.

Said Mayor Pro Tem Taylor in a prior vote that brought us to last night, "“For those of you concerned that your ability to practice religion is being taken away, that is not the case. We can argue and debate many things, but this is not one of them,” he said. “The First Amendment is your shield and it protects you and your ability to practice religion, but it is not a sword to be used to strike down your fellow citizens because they do not agree with you.”

I agree.

I most likely won't get to speak with all of those on the Sterling Heights City Council who voted last night so will pass this message along:

Thank you. Thank you for being a voice for the voiceless. Thank you for shining light onto bigotry in any form. Thank you for doing the right thing and acknowledging all of your citizens and those who want to be part of the greatness that is Sterling Heights. As one of your citizens said "Discrimination is real and it happens every day. It is subtle, it is rarely overt, and it is laws like this that are necessary to protect LGBT people…Freedom is for all of us not just some of us who fit into a preconceived norm. Sometimes freedom for all makes us uncomfortable, that is the challenge of freedom."

I have a huge smile on my face and even more hope in my heart. Sterling Heights is where I came of age. I lived there during elementary school and junior high school, the years that I began to realize that I was different. It is a very special place for me.

Based on the vote last night, the City Council also thinks so.

Thank you for reading.

Nonviolent action against discrimination

If you are connected to me on Facebook, Twittter, or Pinterest you know that I recently found out about a bakery in my own town told a gay couple this past week that they would not make them a wedding cake.

My first thought was that this could not possibly be true. Don't get me wrong, I am not ignorant to the reality of the world. But in Lakewood, CO.

Within a half hour my friend Drew Wilson (Mile High Gay Guy) spoke with the owner of Master Piece Bakery who confirmed that that would not be serving the gay community.

I was stunned.

I did not want to react with anger, hostility or violence, in my actions or in my words. So I went to my world of social media and I got busy.

First to Yelp. Dozens of people had already posted comments and reviews. I wanted to post something on Yelp for the same reason I am writing this blog: so people who support equality and are against bigotry and discrimination in any form will know not to shop at this bakery.

I then got onto Twitter and Facebook and asked those connected with me there to spread the word.  And boy did they.

As all of this was happening I began to write about nonviolence. For this guy to not want to do business with the gay community, well, that's his right. I doubt I can change his mind. (He has not stated why. His only comment was "use your imagination". What I can do is make sure that we, this amazing community of people who will not accept bigotry and discrimination, will not financially support his business. I will keep telling people about this and keep asking them not to shop there.

And I will ask them to speak out against this in a nonviolent way. No threats of violence, no curse-laden phone calls. Simply saying "I heard about your decision on not making a wedding cake for a gay couple, I'm sickened by that, and I will not shop with you" is just fine.

We can stand our ground and fight the good fight without becoming people we do not want to be.

Now I am hungry for cake. Good, vegan cake. I wish Beet Box would deliver to me right now!

Thanks for reading and thank you for your support. My email is vegandude@msn.com is you would like to email me. If you would like to read Drew's blog about his trip to meet the owner of Master Piece Bakery, click here: http://www.milehighgayguy.com/2012/07/masterpiece-cakeshop-serving-up-cakes.html