Mayor's LGBTQIA+ Advisory Council meeting Jan 13

The Mayor's LGBTQIA+ Advisory Council met on January 13. Erie's Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Municipal Equality Index is now at 80. We will explore having County Council pass a conversion therapy ban, similar to what the City of Erie passed in June 2019. We are still working with the Chief of Police on gathering hate crime info. We will also send letters to state legislators advocating for a statewide conversion therapy ban and non-discrimination. Pennsylvania also lacks explicit protections for sexual orientation and gender identity in hate crimes legislation at the state level.

The City of Erie is looking to having language into agreements with youth program contractors, including gender expression and sexual orientation in anti-bullying policies.

The Mayor's Council will be supporting the Zoom presentations on February 25 by the Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center on the overview of the 2020 Pennsylvania LGBTQ Health Needs Assessment. A flyer graphic has already been sent to all co-sponsoring organizations for sharing on social media. The council also made recommendations for topics to be included.

The Second Harvest Food Bank of NW PA has also been in contact with some council members about ways to ensure that community members can easily access food pantries that are LGBTQIA+ friendly. Member organizations are also working on setting up a good drive for late February/ early March.

The Mayor's Council next meets March 4.