Collection:LPB

Genre: Newsmagazine

Place Covered: Baton Rouge, East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana

Copyright Holder: Louisiana Educational Television Authority

Date Issued: 2014-07-25

Duration: 00:14:53

Subjects: Homosexuality | Discrimination in housing | Discrimination in employment

Contributors:

• Whinham, Charlie Host
• Sanford, Shauna Host
• Star, Champagne Speaker
• Schneider, Patti Speaker
• Lowman, Chuck Speaker
• Brown, Dale Speaker
• Cornett, Chad Speaker
• Mills, Gene Speaker
• Benfield, Kathleen Speaker
• Marcelle, Denise Interviewee
• Mills, Gene Interviewee

This segment from the July 25, 2014, episode of the series “Louisiana: The State We’re In” features Shauna Sanford’s report on the three hours of public testimony at the Baton Rouge Metro Council on the Fairness Ordinance, which prohibits employment and housing discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Sanford reports that the Metro Council ended their meeting without a vote on the ordinance. This report includes highlights of the testimony by: Champagne Star; Patti Schneider; Chuck Lowman; former LSU basketball coach Dale Brown; Chad Cornett; Gene Mills; and Kathleen Benfield. Sanford and Charlie Whinham then conduct an in-studio interview with Councilwoman Denise Marcelle, the author of the Fairness Ordinance, and Gene Mills, the president of the Louisiana Family Forum. They discuss: the abrupt ending of the meeting without a vote; the goal of the fairness ordinance; and the possibility of lawsuits.