Wichita City Council members voted overwhelmingly to approve a city ordinance that will ban discrimination based on race, sex, color, national origin, ancestry and other factors in the areas of employment, public accommodations and housing. The vote followed four hours of public comments and discussion at Tuesday’s regular council meeting.
The Council delayed action in July to give the city’s Diversity, Inclusion and Civil Rights Advisory Board a chance to look over the ordinance and make recommendations. The ordinance was presented to the council Tuesday with a few recommended changes in language. Board member Kelli Grant said the ordinance was approved on a 9-1 vote and it will provide local safeguards to protected classes with an enforcement mechanism.
Wichita Regional Chamber of Commerce president John Rolfe and some local business representatives voiced support for the ordinance, saying it would make Wichita a welcoming and diverse community. Some residents and members of local church groups raised concerns that it would create unintended consequences and would interfere with freedom of religion.
Pastor Dionae Gates was the only member of the Diversity, Inclusion and Civil Rights Advisory Board to vote against the ordinance. He said the ordinance did not take into account the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964 and he questioned whether the ordinance was really solving the problem of discrimination.
City Council Member Becky Tuttle, who moved to defer action on the ordinance in July, said the delay allowed the council to hear from the community on both sides. She said it also allowed the council to work out a stronger ordinance. Council Member Bryan Frye agreed that the delay allowed for a better, stronger policy, and he appreciated all of the comments he received over the past three months. He said the ordinance is not perfect and he expects it to be challenged eventually. He said he prays that Wichita can be inviting “by seeking out common ground and not things that separate us.”
The Council voted 6-1 to adopt the ordinance, with Council Member Jeff Blubaugh voting no. The ordinance will go into effect January 1st of 2022, and Vice Mayor Brandon Johnson said that will allow time for the city to provide information and education to the community.
